The measure of a country is how it values its vulnerable. This can be ascertained by how we treat the people who look after the most vulnerable. Older people in nursing homes have been treated abysmally during the lockdown. They have been treated as an afterthought. When decisions were made, they had disastrous consequences for them. As a result, Ireland has one of the highest rates of nursing home deaths in the world. Despite this, there has absolutely no commitment to a full public investigation from this new Gov…

The number of Covid deaths in nursing homes in this country is absolutely shocking and it is wrong. I am always amazed that when a Government is confronted with these figures, the answer is that it counts those deaths better than any other country is counting them. How the deaths are counted is not something to be proud of. Preventing them is the important issue. Regarding childcare services, the closures in the sector are complete, full-time closures. The grants that have been provided add up to about €2,500 for r…

Age Action is a wonderful organisation. In response to the Covid crisis, it developed a hardship fund for older people throughout the country who are finding it impossible to make ends meet. Some 21,000 older people applied to the fund, but there was only enough money for 1,000 grants. It is interesting that Fine Gael Deputies and councillors throughout the country tweeted about the fund or posted about it on Facebook. Some took out adverts in their local paper and put the fund next to their photograph. However, it…

I refer to nursing homes and the shocking case that happened to a constituent of mine, who died in a nursing home in Meath quite recently. The facts of the death are quite shocking. The Taoiseach might have read them in the paper. The individual had an open wound due to tumours on his face-----

-----and had to be brought into hospital. There needs to be an investigation into what has happened in nursing homes in general during this Covid crisis. So far in respect of this individual, the family has not got an investigation from HIQA, the HSE or the Department of Health. Will the Taoiseach commit to having an investigation?

On the points the Taoiseach made on the moneys allocated for tribunals, a sum of €4.2 million is allocated in the Revised Estimates by the Taoiseach's office. There are serious concerns with regard to the expenditure of taxpayers' money with negligible oversight and controls. Only last week, I got a response from the Taoiseach's office in which it admitted there are no controls over the length of time or costs incurred by the Commission of Investigation into the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, IBRC. I also asked…

Not at all. That is absolutely not what I am doing.

Self-determination is a valid idea.

Bhí mé chun comhghairdeas a dhéanamh leis an Taoiseach, ach tá sé imithe anois is trua. An economic tidal wave is starting to hit the State. There is likely to be a budget deficit of approximately €30 billion this year and a continuing deficit over the coming years. Tens of thousands of individual businesses are in significant danger of closing. Hundreds of thousands of jobs could be lost over the next few years. We have an opportunity to prevent that happening. Currently in the State, foreign direct investment, FD…

Ar an gcéad dul síos, ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a dhéanamh leis an Taoiseach nua, an Teachta Micheál Martin. Is onóir ollmhór é a bheith tofa mar Thaoiseach ar an tír. Is lá iontach é seo don Teachta agus dá chlann agus tá súil agam go mbainfidh siad taitneamh as. I also congratulate the newly minted Ministers. The role they have been given is a massive opportunity for them, but if it is used properly, it will also be a massive opportunity for the country. My advice to them is not to be passengers on the bus the…

I hope that short level of bias does not display future Government relations.

Many leaving certificate students have gone through fiercely difficult times in recent months. Many have been cut off from their social circles and many have gone through Covid-19 themselves and lost loved ones. Many are also going through serious economic difficulties brought on by the economic crisis caused by Covid-19. On 24 June, many of them still have many questions. I hope the Minister will be able to answer some of the questions I ask. This may be the last ministerial question time for Deputy McHugh while h…

One hundred and twenty-four days have elapsed since the citizens voted in the general election. That democratic vote has been parked for what is now one third of a year. We are experiencing an unprecedented democratic deficit in this State. Many people outside the Leinster House bubble are shocked at the slow pace of the seemingly never-ending negotiations that now seem to be stalling and getting nowhere. I am using a couple of seconds at the start of my contribution again to urge the parties currently involved in …

I am sorry, Minister, but a full minute has gone and none of the issues-----

The question was what was the Minister's knowledge about the decision with regard to-----

The Minister had no involvement in that decision.

Okay.

A good chunk of my time has been taken by the Minister. I am not sure I have got an answer to the four specific questions I asked but I will move on to the next section. We know from a document that was referenced in yesterday's Irish Daily Mail that up to 200,000 women are waiting for screenings. The chief executive of the National Screening Service, NSS, has warned that when the screening restarts the capacity will only allow for approximately 50% of the number of people to be able to be screened with regards to …

First, I welcome the indemnification of teachers by the State in the context of this year's leaving certificate. Aontú has been calling for such indemnification for weeks and welcomes the good news in that regard. I would like the Minister to tell the Dáil what money has been set aside for the indemnification and whether it will come from the Department of Education and Skills. My next question relates to concerns that still exist within the teaching community about the new leaving certificate system and its potent…

I would like a response to my question on the cost of the indemnification.