There was reference to figures and money. It is not about money; it is about rebuilding the tourism sector. In 2019, approximately 4 million people visited Ireland from Britain. It is about getting those 4 million people back into Ireland in 2021 and 2022 and putting incentives in place. It is not about figures; it is about rebuilding an industry that employed more than 200,000 people. The UK is the biggest source of visitors, providing 4 million visitors in 2019.

I thank the Minister of State for the funding given last October to the consortium of Limerick Institute of Technology and Athlone Institute of Technology. It allowed for the progression of proposals which the consortium had formally commenced in October 2019. The targeted date for the technological university to open is 1 September 2021. Both institutes of technology voted overwhelmingly in favour of the measures contained in the application for this project. Professor Ciarán Ó Catháin, president of Athlone IT, sa…

Following the decision last Friday not to open public houses across the country, I was speaking to members of the VFI, Vintners Federation of Ireland, in Longford and Westmeath. I do not agree with the decision. While we have off-licences and supermarkets selling cheap alcohol in an unregulated manner, it is going to cause many issues. Publicans need to see a path for themselves if they are to have a future. Something needs to be put in place when and if they can open. It is the only sector which has been closed si…

I welcome the Minister of State. I raise the issue of an application for additional school accommodation by St. Mel's College, Longford, a school I attended a number of years ago. The college opened in September 1865, with 48 boarders and 28 day boys. For most of the next decade, the college was a major seminary, where students pursued philosophy and theology through to ordination. More than 650 former students of the college were ordained to the priesthood between 1865 and 2000. In 1965, the centenary of the colle…

I am delighted that the project will be moved to an assessment stage, which I believe will be successful. The school engaged a professional architect to assess the possibilities for the project. The report which stated that it was viable to bring the building back into use was submitted to the Department. We discussed costs for education. This project would provide value for money and would bring a large building within the confines of the town within walking distance of students back into use rather than incurring…

I would also like to endorse the campaign for people to shop green this weekend, and I am going to be parochial and ask those in my own county of Longford and those in Westmeath to shop in businesses in their counties to help with employment. I wish to raise the issue of services for those seeking early intervention. I know that it is an issue that has been raised on numerous occasions, but figures recently released by the HSE reveal long waiting lists for assessments for speech and language therapy, occupational t…

I welcome the Minister of State. I echo the comments of a number of Senators paying tribute to staff in front-line services, in hospitals, care homes, An Post, the gardaí and carers, who we sometimes forget. They are the people who work with the HSE and go into the homes of elderly people seven days a week. It is important to pay tribute to them for the work that they have done and the care that they have given to so many elderly people. I echo Senator Hoey's comments and mentioned a couple of weeks ago that we hav…

I concur with the comments made by Senators Dolan and Murphy about the significant funding that was received yesterday, in the midlands in particular, through the just transition fund. As much as €5 million was given to specific projects in my own county of Longford and multiple millions of euro was given to others that cross over the area. I concur with the comments that Senator Burke made about minimum unit pricing of alcohol and the abundance of cheap alcohol that is available at a time when all of the pubs are …

I welcome the Minister. One line in her speech struck me: "Being able to feel safe and secure, particularly in one's home, is a fundamental right." It is a right, and I welcome that. I fully support the Minister and I know she will implement our national response in this regard. I also support the Minister's proposal to bring forward legislation in respect of the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017 to deal with the distribution or publication of intimate images without consent and with…

I support Senator Byrne's comments on the fair deal scheme and it is extremely important that this be legislated for immediately. I raise the question of the possible temporary lifting of QQI level 5 qualification requirements for people working in childcare. Following the recent HSE announcement on the lifting of this requirement in order to become a carer, I ask if a similar action could be taken with the childcare sector. In the first lockdown in March, it was clear to see how essential childcare services are, e…

I welcome the Minister and compliment the Cathaoirleach on reading the roll of names into the record of the House. I fully support the campaign by the former members of the Defence Forces, and particularly Senators Craughwell, Wall and McGahon, who put this matter on the agenda. I spoke this morning to a survivor who lives in my native parish, Private John Dowler, or Seán as he is known to me, about this. He said they were treated like lepers and they were told not to speak about it. In 2017, the Government decided…

Unfortunately Longford cannot claim any part of Joe Biden. I wish to raise the issue of student nurses. These young people have been providing essential care as care assistants during the pandemic. This experience is invaluable to them in their journey to become nurses. It is work which is necessary to fund their college fees and to support them while living away from home. However, a number of issues have come to the fore recently as these young people go on placement as part of their degree with no pay. Many of t…

I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. On the Order of Business of 29 July, I spoke about the 1,700 independent not-for-profit section 39 organisations that operate in Ireland, and in particular, St. Christopher's Services, which operates in my own area of Longford, and St. Hilda's Services of Athlone. St. Christopher's Services provides day services for 141 adults, full-time residential care for 39 adults, respite care for 50 adults, and day-to-day respite for 15 children. The biggest challenge facing an …

I thank the Minister of State and wish her well in her role. I apologise for not congratulating her earlier. In her concluding remarks, the Minister of State stated that these issues have been resolved but the reality on the ground is that the issues of staff and increments have not been resolved. A significant amount of money is outstanding. I gave the figure earlier. It is over €1 million to which these staff members are entitled. They took these cuts during the downturn in the economy and they are entitled to th…

I raise the issue of the recent application for strand 2 of the just transition fund. I believe that evaluations are under way and it is expected that applicants will be contacted this month in respect of their applications. More than €11 million in funding has been put in place to help fund these projects, create employment and re-employ workers who have lost their jobs, especially in Longford and Offaly. I refer in particular to the Lough Ree power plant in Lanesborough, County Longford, the closure of which has …

I raise the issue of the Camlin Quarter urban regeneration application by Longford County Council. It is a project to co-ordinate the development of the northern area of Longford town, utilising key assets and connecting the functional area in a strategic way that maximises ongoing and future investment. The plan incorporates an area of more than 55 acres, encompassing the 18 acre Sean Connolly Barracks site, with a new focus on the River Camlin. Longford has a high ratio of jobs to resident population, which indic…

My contribution will be very short. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, to the House. I wish him well and congratulate him on his new position. I fully support this Bill, which is needed to underpin the level 5 restrictions which have been put in place. The reality is that there was very limited adherence to the guidelines that were previously proposed. That is why are we back at level 5. We need stronger measures to support our doctors, nurses, teachers and all those who work, and have worked over rec…

I wish to raise the issue of a dispute between the Food Safety Authority of Ireland and the County and City Management Association, CCMA, which represents the local authorities throughout the country. The dispute centres on a funding shortfall of €1.2 million for veterinary inspections of smaller slaughterhouses carried out by the local authority vets, who also work with the local enterprise offices to develop new businesses as well as overseeing the regulatory standards. The current contract runs out on 30 Novembe…

I wish to raise the issue of the continued problems being experienced by travel agents in accessing flight refunds from Ryanair, a company that has been particularly critical of the Government in recent days. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, travel agents have submitted thousands of claims to Ryanair in order to refund their customers whose flight bookings were affected. To date, travel agents are owed approximately €20 million in refunds from Ryanair. Senator Dolan and I spoke to my local travel agent…

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. In the brief time remaining, I will home in one point in the winter plan, namely, the provision of 4.76 million additional home support hours. I pay tribute to all the carers in houses throughout Ireland who look after both elderly people and those with disabilities. I am seeking a commitment that these additional hours will actually be made available. Additional hours were announced in last year's winter programme but there was no evidence of them for the people who ne…