Rose Conway-Walsh: Calls for Right to Clean Air in Workplaces and Schools
Rose Conway-Walsh spoke on ventilation policy and a Private Members' Bill to allow workers to request Health and Safety Authority inspections to verify fresh air levels. She argued that clean air is a basic right for workers and students, and criticised the government's reactive stance on Covid transmission in schools.
Private Members' Bill
She thanked People Before Profit for bringing forward the legislation and outlined that the bill would give workers the right to request inspection by the Health and Safety Authority to verify sufficient levels of fresh air in the workplace.
Ventilation and Covid transmission
She emphasised that Covid is an airborne virus and that ventilation and air filtration are crucial measures to prevent transmission. She referenced Belgium's approach of setting a minimum air quality standard and said clean air has become central to workplace and school safety.
Schools and students' experiences
She highlighted impacts on education, reading a letter from a college student who said policies to keep doors and windows open for Covid prevention were preventing learning, especially for those with autoimmune conditions or autism. The student described cold classrooms, inadequate heating in older buildings, and noise disruption that undermined the right to education.
Operational constraints and reporting
She noted practical problems: teachers unable to close doors or windows because of reporting requirements if a classmate tests positive, and older school buildings that are hard to heat. She said these realities make current policies unsustainable for students, parents and staff.
Criticism of government response
She criticised the Minister and the Department for a dogmatic, reactive approach and for failing to fully acknowledge Covid transmission in schools. She cited a past episode involving Clare Morris Boys National School as symptomatic of a strained relationship between the Department, schools and boards of management, and urged ministers to listen to teachers and students and take the legislation on board.
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The issue of adequate ventilation in the workplace is extremely important and I want to thank People Before Profit for bringing this legislation forward. The proposed Private Members' Bill aims to give workers the right to request inspection in their workplace by the Health and Safety Authority to verify sufficient levels of fresh air. I have no doubt that the right to clean air would be viewed by most people as a fair and reasonable right that should be afforded to every worker. It is not always possible to achieve this with open windows and doors. If you were in Belmolet last Friday you would say I could not physically open my front door, I could not with the storm. So what are schools and workplaces supposed to do in that situation? It is bonkers. We have already seen a similar approach to this taken in Belgium where they set a minimum standard of air quality. This was proposed in Belgium in 2019 prior to the Covid outbreak. Workers have the right to expect that air in their place of work is clean. This has of course taken on a new meaning with the onset of the pandemic. And we have known as was said for over a year that Covid is an airborne virus and that the clean air is crucial in preventing its spread. This has made measures such as ventilation and air filtration crucial in any serious attempt to tackle transmission. I remember the importance of ventilation being discussed as far back as September 2020 in this House in relation to the safety of workers and of processing plants. So I want to talk about schools and there is a lot I can say but I want to read you this letter because also in third level institutions so right through our education. And I want to commend those who have done absolutely everything in their power to keep the schools open and to keep them as safe as possible. And Minister, I think it is absolutely atrocious that even at this stage government are still, you know, not admitting fully that Covid is transmitted in schools. And I was reminded this morning of exactly this time last year when Clare Morris Boys National School had the issue there. And the dogmatic approach by the Minister and the Department in castigating the school, the Board of Management and all that, because they had high Covid levels within their school and they needed to close the school for their own safety. And this is symptomatic of the relationship that has that has occurred in schools between the Minister, the Department and the schools and the Board of Management. And it's not right. It's not right that parents and teachers are treated with such disrespect. And now we have a situation where we have nine year olds in the battleground of Covid. This didn't happen by accident. This has happened by government being absolutely just reactive and in denial of situations within school. But this letter is from Ellen and she says, I am a student. I won't say what the college is. In college, the policy is to leave doors and windows open during the lessons for Covid prevention. While this is a sound theory and practice, it's presented preventing myself and other students from learning. I have an autoimmune condition and I'm autistic. I'm often painfully cold in class and cannot focus. I'm an art student and my hands are so cold that I often can no longer hold my pencil and have to leave class to go to buy a cup of tea to warm up. It's nearly December and it's freezing. Often my classmates and I are shivering and have to wear coats, hats or gloves in class. Leaving the doors open mean that we have the noise outside where the children off the college are screaming and shouting and the noise of students and cleaners in the hallways. This is making it impossible for autistic students like myself to focus in class. Unfortunately, the college doesn't have sufficient heating in all classrooms, especially the old buildings to combat this. This is not unique to my school. A lot of schools in Ireland are old and hard to heat buildings. The teachers cannot close doors or windows as if a classmate tests positive for Covid, they must do a report and disclose if the doors and windows were open in the classroom. It seems that there is nothing that the college can do as the policy of leaving doors and windows open even in winter is in your hands. The cases may be going up but the temperatures are going down. This policy needs to be re-examined as my right to education and the rights of other students who are ill or likewise disabled are being taken away. I urge you to reconsider this policy and give me back my right to education. That's from an autistic young person and they are telling it exactly how it is. I don't want the Minister to respond to me but it is important that the Minister examines this legislation and takes this legislation on board and listens to the students and to the teachers when they send you messages like this. It just is not sustainable. Deputy Martin. Deputy Martin The Emmanuel 脳
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