I echo Senator Casey's views and support him. I also wish to discuss bars, gastropubs and restaurants. It seems absolutely ridiculous that we cannot leave our counties but the Government expects hotels the length and breadth of the country, including in Galway city and county, to have no supports. It is just not acceptable. The fundamental point is, as we are aware at this stage, that a main course has to be provided, it has to cost in excess of €9 and the preparation and commercial kitchen must be on site. I have …

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. Following a weekend that had two great All-Ireland hurling semi-finals, I wish to raise GAA coverage. The deal that allows Sky Sports exclusive rights over some championship matches expires at the end of next year. It is time all inter-county championship matches returned to free-to-air television. Certainly, they can be on Sky Sports, but they should also be on the terrestrial channels - RTÉ2, TV3 or TG4. The GAA belongs to the Irish people, including the smal…

That is fine. I thank the Minister of State for his time. If he could send me the response by email I would appreciate that. I welcome the review. It is encouraging. I am delighted to hear that the Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, has committed to that. I do not want to labour the point but the fact is that hundreds of millions of euro of taxpayers' money have been invested in the GAA. What is happening is morally wrong, and morally wrong in terms of the members. The GAA said in 2014 that it was for the diaspora.…

So long as there is no mention of children's socks.

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy English, for coming in again today. To state the obvious, it was always going to be much easier to close down the economy last March than to open it up again. From a realistic point of view and with no disrespect to NPHET, people are going to socialise this Christmas regardless of advice. The choice is between controlled and regulated environments and the uncontrolled environments. I want to talk about the hospitality sector. It is worth pointing out that in the period the hosp…

I want to address the issue of bars and restaurants re-opening on Tuesday, 1 December. I noted the comments made by the Chief Medical Officer this week expressing doubt that such advice would be given. It is essential that we approach this from a realistic angle. Perhaps 2020 has been the toughest year in the history of the State so people will at least like to socialise for Christmas. In the absence of pubs and restaurants the inevitable reality is, as we have seen previously, that house parties will happen everyw…

Please show respect for Members who are not in the House

I congratulate the Minister, Deputy O’Brien, on his appointment and wish him well in his role. He has hit the ground running in recent months. He has been a great support to me since I entered this House. I have great confidence in him and I know he will deliver social and affordable housing in Galway and throughout the country. I welcome the Bill. I am delighted there is cross-party support for it in the House. I understand the Minister will correct the record regarding a number of issues that need to be confirmed…

I want to begin by thanking the Minister, Deputy Michael McGrath, for his efforts since the formation of the Government. We are facing one of the greatest challenges in the history of the State and along with the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, the Minister delivered a budget yesterday that invests in the resilience of the Irish people, Irish businesses and the entire society to come through this challenge and emerge stronger, as we have done with so many challenges in the past. The labour market supports imp…

I thank the Minister of State for attending. As Senator Casey has outlined, the strain placed on the hospitality sector has been enormous in recent weeks and months. I will outline a number of specifics for the attention of the Minister of State. The hospitality sector contributes €4.5 billion in wages, salaries and employment taxes every year. More than 330,000 people are employed or are supported directly by demand from the sector. Tens of thousands of their jobs are located outside cities in places where jobs wi…

Will the Minister of State give a commitment in the House this morning that at the very latest he will inform the hospitality sector by Thursday, 22 October, which gives only four or five days notice, whether they will be allowed to reopen? I ask the Minister of State to bring this to the attention of the Minister. It is absolutely vital that we get notice for rosters, orders and chefs across the board. The stay and spend initiative, with the greatest respect, is too complicated and now that it is meant to come int…

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy English, to the House. Fianna Fáil will support the Government amendment to the motion. We accept that neither the current regime for sick leave nor the parental leave system was designed for the current pandemic. Although there is no legal right to sick pay from an employer, employees who are not entitled to sick pay from their employer may be able to avail of illness benefit from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection. Collective bargaining has achieved …

Like others, I wish to comment on the restrictions that will possibly be imposed throughout Dublin later today. I fully appreciate the rising number of cases. In that context, the increase in the number of cases in hospital ICUs is a matter of deep concern for all Senators. If further restrictions are to be imposed on the hospitality sector, which has already taken a huge hit, then I request that the advice and evidence on which these restrictions are being introduced be published because, naturally, we want to bri…

The Cathaoirleach, as a regular visitor to our city, will be aware that it was a great and fitting honour for Galway to be named the European Capital of Culture but, as we know, matters have not gone as planned for a number of reasons, including the pandemic. As a legislator, I am aware of the serious concerns relating to Galway 2020, the company that was established to deliver the programme of events. It was revealed at a Galway City Council meeting last week that in excess of €18 million has been spent despite no…

I thought the Cathaoirleach was forgetting about the boy from Galway.

I raise the matter of the reopening of pubs on 10 August. To state the obvious, public health and safety is paramount for both staff and customers so the guidelines must be followed to the letter of the law. Bars serving food, as the Cathaoirleach will be aware, have been open since 29 June. This has gone reasonably well. Premises which have not followed the guidelines should be closed forthwith. I facilitated a high-level meeting with the Taoiseach and senior officials in his Department on Friday last to give them…

I congratulate the Minister on her appointment, which is an enormous achievement. I am sure everybody in the House wishes her well. Many of the speakers have commented on secondary schools so I will focus on primary schools. I have three or four points and a couple of questions. Supply teaching panels have been announced for the primary sector but how many teachers are likely to be employed on each panel? There is a major focus on secondary schools, which is welcome, but I want to ensure primary schools are covered…

I am sharing time with Senator Byrne. I sincerely congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, on his appointment. It is well deserved, given his impact on politics throughout his political life, and he is well capable and able. I wish him the best. I also thank him for his detailed overview of this welcome legislation. There is an onus on all Senators and the entire Government to assist SMEs and companies as we try to recover from this Covid-19 pandemic. Companies have had to adapt and are finding new methods …

I will share time with Senator Casey. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy English, for coming to the House and providing a detailed overview of the Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020. This legislation is vital to the overall economic response to Covid-19. I have been speaking to business owners in Galway city and county and across the west since the crisis began. Now that businesses are reopening every week, we need to show them support and be flexible in our lending, as the Minister of State outlined. In cha…

Even though it was raised this House yesterday, I want to speak on the Government decision, from the NPHET team in particular, on the hospitality sector. Even though there has been great respect for the NPHET team over recent months and it has done tremendous work, this is a very difficult decision for pubs throughout every village and city in Ireland. Naturally, paramount to all of us in this House is public health and safety, but from that perspective, there were certainly alternatives that did not seem to be inc…