Deputy Micheál Martin - speech from 30 Apr 2020

Thank you very much, Ciancórle. Today we're going to talk about COVID-19 for the COVID-19 virus. Thank you very much for joining us today, and thank you very much for joining us today. We're going to talk about COVID-19, and we're going to talk about COVID-19. We're going to talk about COVID-19, declaration of COVID-19, and so on in the moment we're going to talk about COVID-19, but we're going to talk about COVID-19. If you don't want to talk about COVID-19, why are they going to put COVID-19 back to COVID-19? We're also in the Clustachers of the Sule, Clustachers of the Cule. We're at 5 in the final, now in the final final. We're at the final, in the final year. And we'll see you next time. Our first thought today must be with the 1,190 families who have lost a loved one during this pandemic. Their suffering and the struggles of the thousands more who have required urgent care are a reminder to us all that this pandemic has been every bit as serious as we feared. This unique and terrible crisis has required an exceptional response, not just here but also throughout most of the world. It is another proof of how much we rely on each other, locally, nationally and internationally. Throughout the past two months, every part of our society has played a role in the response to the pandemic and have felt its impact. I believe that the resolve to do everything possible remains strong. No one believes that the threat is gone and no one expects a rapid reversal of every control measure. However, there is a real and growing uncertainty and for many a deep unease founded on the lack of clarity about what the next steps are. The government should never forget that Doyle Airden, much of the media and of course the Irish people have been willing to suspend much of the assertive oversight, which a free democracy like ours insists on. This should not be taken as permission to limit debate and to expect that people would simply wait to be told what they may be allowed to know. In fact, the only reasonable response to the controls which we have collectively accepted on our rights is for government to actually increase transparency and meaningful consultation. Every significant study ever undertaken into the response to major emergencies has shown that trust depends on transparency and effectiveness depends on allowing different voices into discussions. And I've consistently said this from the beginning in terms of the location of clusters, for example. I think it was six or seven weeks ago I would have identified problems in the healthcare settings, particularly in nursing homes. Likewise, in other centres as well as I've identified in terms of meat plants and in particular locations. I don't see in other countries, district by district, the incidence rates are just published and there doesn't seem to be any negative pushback or fallback as a result of that. I think that's something that should be done here as well because it might positively impact on human behaviour. Because as I said, you know, trust does depend on that transparency and effectiveness as well. As we continue to move away from initial and the most severe phase of responding to the pandemic, there are many hundreds of decisions to be taken which will impact on the health and livelihood of different sectors and communities. They must be given a proper role in discussions. It simply is not good enough, in my view, that announcements are made by the Minister of Children about the child care services without meaningful consultation with the child care sector. And it's not good enough that the nursing home sector is not formally represented in key discussions. And I'd add, T-shirt, that the pay deals for the nursing unions, that was already agreed, and apparently deeper have no issue with this. But for some reason, there's been a delay in following through on the payments that these are the agreements of last year. Apparently, they haven't followed through yet, and the nursing unions have made representations to us in that regard. And that's something, I think, given the role that the nursing profession have played in this crisis, it's very difficult to comprehend why those pay deals haven't been honoured and delivered upon. And I think we'll also say that it's simply not acceptable that in area after area there are background briefings about what is expected to be decided, but the relevant groups of employers, managers, and workers have not been brought into the discussion to help shape the decisions. No one is expecting a perfect response, and absolutely everyone accepts the pressures which key parts of the public service are working under. However, the spirit of common purpose is not being used enough, and critical discussions simply have to be more systematically opened up to inclusive participation. As things stand today, there is widespread unease about the lack of clarity on the basis upon which decisions will be taken. This is not the same as a demand for certain decisions. Simply, a wish to be told in direct terms what the triggers are for certain key policy decisions. Such clarity has been provided by governments in many countries. Last week, the Taoiseach said in response to the Doyle asking for clarity, that decisions on lifting restrictions would be taken in light of three general considerations, epidemiology, hospital and ICU capacity, and the ability to quickly test and trace. Yesterday, party leaders were told in unequivocal terms that testing is now not an issue in terms of the lifting of restrictions. I think it was in response to a question that was put by Deputy Alan Kelly, and I just think we need a bit more clarity on that, given what has been said to date on this. The premature announcement of testing capacity in the past was acknowledged, but we were told that the capacity is in place to carry out more testing and will be in place later in May as well. We are also told that while hospitals are operating well within capacity at the moment, and at a capacity which other countries have seen as providing for possible increases in COVID cases, there is a desire to be careful on this front, and I understand that. Where there is no clarity is what the triggers will be in relation to epidemiology. The reproduction number has been below one for some weeks, and the public information suggests that the main concern is hotspots rather than broader community spread. We also need more information and more answers about the impact on other health issues of decisions taken in relation to the pandemic response. In recent days, doctors in many countries, including Ireland, have been drawing attention to the fact that we must understand that delayed diagnostics and treatment in other areas will lead to higher non-COVID mortality. And I think the teacher has referred to that in his remarks as well. Most of the diagnostic capacity of our country is lying idle. So, too, is much of our national, public and private capacity to treat other diseases. Doctors throughout the country are reporting how people are not presenting with diseases such as cancer, which has not suddenly become less prevalent. I'd say on the private hospital issue, that still hasn't been resolved. And I think there's a bit of a mess made, I think, in terms of how that, on the contractual issues around that, that have delayed, really, treatments. And I think it should be, every effort should be made to bring that to a conclusion so that we can get more procedures done in the interest of patient safety and continuity of care. We need an urgent assessment of what is to be done to address all of this. And I think a really significant second strand has to develop a non-COVID strand in terms of our acute hospital system. And, as I've said, part of it is in relation to the private hospitals, where the spending of many millions on empty wards, you know, cannot be justified continually. I understand the reasons why it had to be done initially. We did need the capacity, but we need to be utilising it to the maximum. It has been reported that tomorrow there will be a cabinet meeting, and the teacher has said that, after which you will announce a strategy for the period ahead. At a minimum, the Irish people need to be given clarity on the exact basis on which changes will be triggered. And it can't be more of the will-tell-you-when-we-have-decided approach. The move away from a severe lockdown will only happen in gradual steps. But these need to be outlined, and sectors need to be given the opportunity to propose actions which they can take to operate within health guidelines. While the science is absolutely clear, the shaping of policies to respect this science requires debate. Without a clear proposal from government and future steps, Dáil-Airden and the media will not be able to perform their core roles of oversight and debate. And we will be denied the opportunity to represent voices which currently feel marginalised in the discussions. In the coming weeks, a proposed social protection estimate will be brought before the Dáil. This estimate is required as a result of the unprecedented scale of the economic impact of the pandemic and policies to respond to it. As we have said to the government, this vote requires proper scrutiny. It cannot just be presented as a measure to be nodded through. We will be insisting that there be a detailed review of the proposal, such as it would receive if normal work were in place. And as part of this, we want a full and open assessment of the economic impact of the pandemic. At the moment, we have macro assessments, but very little beyond this. And we are concerned that there are many issues which have not emerged yet. We want to hear a full assessment of the impact on the finances of public companies. For example, we are currently operating a public transport system, which is receiving almost no revenue. And the NTA have been less responsive to their need. What is to be done to fill this gap? We can see throughout Europe that governments are preparing bailouts of public companies and nationally critical enterprises. For example, the German government is preparing an enormous funding package for Lufthansa. When will we be told, at least, a broad outline of these challenges? What is the current state of local authority finances? What is the assessment of the hit to be taken by higher education institutions? And there are many groups of workers who need us to consider their situation. Fixed-term workers in research facilities are critical to the response, but they face heightened uncertainty about their status. And frankly, it is not acceptable that workers abandoned by Debenhams in what looks like an opportunistic timing of store closures, or having their names taken by Gardaí when they undertake responsible, socially distanced demonstrations. They cannot be deprived of the right to draw attention to the situation. In the NESC report on the just transitions, which I just conclude, in relation to climate change, it was emphasised that the digital transition also carries with it major social and economic challenges. And if it's true that habits developed during the pandemic will lead to an acceleration of the digital transformation, we will need an acceleration of measures to help those adversely affected by it. And on face coverings, again, I think there's no credible alternative now to adopting their use, particularly in public transport. Other countries have assessed their role. I know I think there's going to be some advice coming shortly on that. Thank you, Ciancórla. I think the shared national effort has achieved much in the past two months. We all know it's not over, but we need an inclusive approach to preparing for what we do next. Thank you. Thank you.