Nationally, we are making progress in the battle against Covid-19. In terms of hospitalisations and ICU numbers, the situation is extremely positive. For example, as of this morning, there were 132 people in hospital and 39 in intensive care. The vaccination programme is making great progress, with close to 32% of the eligible population having received a first dose and 12% having received a second dose, which amounts to 1.65 million doses administered. This gives us great cause for hope and continued momentum, bot…

First, I think it is a good thing that public representatives would be proactive and would meet with the Chief Medical Officer and responsibly work out what measures would be helpful in terms of reducing the numbers in Donegal. From what I could glean, that was the genuine motivation behind that meeting during a bank holiday weekend. From my perspective, it was a positive thing to do. I believe there should be follow through. I will check whether representatives of the Chief Medical Officer can make themselves avai…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. To cut straight to the point, there has been strong delivery of new homes in rural areas over recent years. Approximately 26,000 rural house planning permissions were granted in the past five years. In the same period, nearly 93% of that number of rural homes were actually built. There is ongoing work. The Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, is currently updating rural housing planning guidelines that will continue to allow for the …

First, I commend the Deputy on organising that commemoration. The people of west Limerick more than did their bit in terms of helping the struggle for Irish independence. Indeed, my late grandfather was close in the Mitchelstown area with those in west Limerick in a number of endeavours. I wish the Deputy well in that regard. They did not die in vain because we have a country, overall and globally, that is a good country to live and work in and a good country in which to have a reasonable quality of life. Part of t…

It is a matter suitable for Topical Issue matters but the Government has moved on this. We have decided on the safe, gradual and phased reopening of some driver services through the Road Safety Authority, RSA, from 10 May. The RSA has recruited 40 more testers who are currently being trained and will be deployed from June to deal with the backlog of tests. Plans are also advancing to recruit a further 40 testers and to add up to 20 driving test centres. Obviously, the gradual reopening of services will not immediat…

First of all, I am very supportive of the need for women to be accompanied by their partners at all prenatal scans. Clinical directors have determined this from the outset of the pandemic on public health grounds and on no other grounds. We have sought in our engagement with the HSE to ensure there would be national uniformity in the application of these guidelines, and given that case numbers and the spread of the virus has been very substantially suppressed within hospital environments, it seems to me expectant m…

I do not support slice-by-slice privatisation of the national transport system. There is a balance to be struck and it has been struck for quite some time. I believe in a strong Bus Éireann and strong investment in it, particularly in the context of climate change. It is very important for fleet renewal and the upgrading of the fleet generally that it would be consistent with the country's climate change agenda. That is the broad basis that underpins Government policy. Public transport is going to grow and expand i…

First of all, there is something new in what happened over the weekend. There is no point in saying there is not because there is. The Government will act on that in terms of the move by REITs into suburban housing estates. Supply is key in the market. We need a greater supply of houses and apartments. We do not have a sufficiency of supply right now. We certainly did not have six or eight years ago but the institutional investors buying up completed housing estates is not acceptable at all. It runs counter to Gove…

It is regrettable we have a dispute of this kind under way. That is a matter in the first instance for the ESB to address and to resolve. That is where the matter has to be dealt with at this stage.

I thank the Deputy for his question. It is anticipated that a memo for Government will be brought to the Cabinet in the next week or two. It is a Government priority that this important legislation, which brings long-awaited rights and protections to farmers and small business owners, is brought forward and passed without delay. It was agreed that the Departments of Health and Housing, Local Government and Heritage would work together to bring forward a Committee Stage amendment on the treatment of the proceeds of …

First, the Government and I are very supportive of rural pubs and those which do not sell food. In our view, they have provided a very important social network across the length and breadth of the country. The virus has wreaked havoc on the hospitality sector, including on pubs.

The virus has done this. The Deputy wishes to create a political polemic and rhetoric which is untrue.

It is unfortunate that he has gone down that particular road-----

-----and used language that was inappropriate and wrong.

As the Deputy said correctly, the Government has already provided supports for establishments that provide outdoor dining and we are looking at examining, in a positive way, what we can do for those who do not provide outdoor dining but might need support to facilitate outdoor drinking, for example, as such services recommence on 7 June. The important point is to keep the pressure on the virus. I am aware that the Deputy has been in semi-denial at times about-----

-----the Covid-19 pandemic-----

-----but it is important that we treat it as it is.

The Deputy certainly can.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. Both she and Deputy MacSharry have raised this issue consistently and robustly for quite a while. I have spoken to the Minister, Deputy Ryan, in respect of this. I understand the importance of the Irish Coast Guard Service, the base in Sligo and the expenditure that the airport had to undertake and I will continue to engage with the Department in respect of this issue.

When I heard the Deputy say the end of September, something came to mind in terms of Kerry people sometimes, although not at all times. I had better not say anything as I am Taoiseach. We have looked at a variety of mechanisms in terms of how we would reflect the State's appreciation of not only front-line healthcare workers but all front line workers who have enabled people to get through what has been a very difficult journey of the pandemic itself. The hospitality sector, in particular, has suffered enormously a…