The Health and Criminal Justice (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill has far-reaching implications for the public. Draconian powers are proposed to be extended. Many Government backbenchers have serious concerns about this, as have a large number of Opposition Members. The idea of guillotining it is not acceptable. We should allow time for people to express their views on this important issue.

It is-----

The lack of affordability of insurance in this country has been a hot topic for many years and the source of much annoyance and anger for consumers. High insurance premiums add significantly to the cost base of our economy. As premiums go up and up, this plays directly into the increase in the cost of living. Affordable insurance, therefore, is fundamental to the long-term interests of our society and communities, not least in regard to protecting and creating jobs. One does not have to look far to see how astronom…

While that 50% figure is welcome, I appeal to the Minister to publish an updated supply projection or forecast table. He has already expressed concern about the supply of the Janssen vaccine. Can he put on record the expectations regarding the AstraZeneca vaccine over the coming weeks, and give us the worst-case and best-case scenarios?

What is the level of concern on that at the moment?

Okay. With regard to cohorts that have received the first dose of AstraZeneca, there is a wide range of concern about the recent evidence showing that there is only 33% protection against the Indian variant. Even with the second dose, it is still only 60%. Many people aged over 60 and under 60 are concerned about the implications of that. Generally, we should be concerned about that into the coming critical months when many people will be moving around more and because of the existence of the Indian variant. The Mi…

Okay. I ask the Minister to raise the possibility of providing the Pfizer vaccine as the second dose for certain of the cohort, bearing in mind the principle of vaccinating the older cohorts first. I ask him to consider the possibility of using Pfizer as the second dose. He might come back to us on that. I want to pick up on those points made about cohort 7, which is a real issue. There is much concern about it on the part of people who have very much limited their lives over the past year. There is a real issue he…

There is not.

There is not if people have to wait a month.

The Minister might send me a note.

I am glad to have an opportunity to participate in this debate, though the timing is not the best. It would have been better if we could have had the debate in the context of the plan for international travel that is to be announced tomorrow. It would have been helpful if there had been more discussion and particularly more briefing in that regard. As I have said a few times now, there has been no briefing from the Government for the Opposition on any aspect of the response to Covid since last December. That is not…

A national emergency existed last year and this House passed a number of pieces of emergency legislation, which the Minister is now seeking to extend beyond their express expiry date on 9 June. The legislation before us provides for one extension and further three-monthly extensions of the four pieces of emergency legislation we passed last year. This legislation conferred wide-ranging and draconian powers on the Minister for Health, which he admits, and on members of An Garda Síochána. The legislation also gave a …

Can the Minister tell us what exactly is the Government's policy for apartment living? We know what the Green Party policy is supposed to be. It says it wants sustainable, high-quality developments that are located a 15-minute walk or cycle from a city centre. However, does it only want people to be able to rent this kind of housing, and rent in insecure tenancies? That is all that is available to people at the moment. The Minister for Finance tells us apartments must be omitted from the meagre measures announced t…

There is very little reality in what the Minister is saying. It does not bear any relationship to the existing situation. He had an opportunity this week to do something about that and ensure there were controls introduced for all homes. The question is whether he regards apartments as homes. Is it his view that first-time buyers have a right to purchase apartments? At the moment, they cannot do so. There are no apartments at all in Dublin city centre available for first-time buyers. The Minister talks about incent…

Does the Minister accept that the aspiration of purchasing a home in Dublin city centre does not exist for young people?

What of long-term leasing?

He and his party are not doing it.

The Bill before us provides for the extension of the three-year cap on assessable property to farms and businesses for not less than 50% of their normal working time for six years. This is an issue that has been long recognised as something that needs to be addressed. To that extent, I have no difficulty with the Bill and the Social Democrats will not oppose it. What is notable about the fact that we have legislation before us on the fair deal scheme, or the nursing home support scheme, as it is called, is the numb…

Earlier today, the Minister said the purpose of these measures was to protect homes for families. That was a telling remark. Clearly this Government does not believe that families live in apartments. It believes that apartments are for students and renters but not for families, it seems, so they are not protected and they are left to the vultures. It may come as news to the Minister that the majority of planning permissions granted last year were for apartments, with 26,000 granted compared with 18,000 granted for …

The Government has become what can only be described as a circular firing squad. Fianna Fáil Deputies are blaming Fine Gael for the housing crisis and Fine Gael Deputies are blaming Fianna Fáil. I would like to settle the dispute between the coalition partners because both points of view are correct. Fianna Fáil crashed the housing market the first time around and Fine Gael then let vulture funds loose on the carcase for a decade with tax incentives and fast-track planning. Now both parties have joined forces in go…