Mattie McGrath: Says Covid bill punishes artists and over-66s
Mattie McGrath criticised the Covid bill as failing to support artists, musicians and over-66s and said the legislation is discriminatory. He expressed disappointment with mixed messaging from officials and a lack of briefings from the Department of Health and Neffert.
Main criticism
McGrath told colleagues he was very disappointed with the bill and the overall handling of Covid matters. He said party and group leader briefings with the Department of Health and Neffert had not produced answers, that there were huge mixed messages, and he expected Neffert to appear before the business committee.
Impact on artists and performers
He argued the bill provides no meaningful support for artists, musicians, bands, dancing schools and arts schools. McGrath said performers face costly vehicle, DOE'd and tax requirements — the "man in the van" is not covered — and that actors and musicians who invest in equipment and self-upskill are being left without support.
Effect on over-66s and small operators
McGrath said the over 66ers have been punished by the government and named publicans, lorry drivers and taxi drivers as among those discriminated against. He raised concern for individual school-bus owners, noting companies with contracted buses get a 50% payment while individual owners not contracted received nothing, despite being expected to mobilise in late August and September.
Payments and policy errors
He criticised the blanket 350 payment, saying it was given widely even to those who only worked a few hours and has created financial trouble. McGrath described sudden reopening reversals that left publicans out of pocket with stock orders and said the bill "doesn't go anywhere to help" the sectors he represents.
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I too Minister, I'm very disappointed with the bill, I'm very disappointed with the whole situation around the Covid and we had briefings at party leaders and group leaders with the Department of Health and with Neffert and then when we sat in the question and we weren't getting answers then I raised it one day in the door, we hadn't had a briefing with the last two months with Neffert. I know I think Neffert will be in the business committee on Thursday morning I hope but there's huge mixed messages and there's huge discrimination against the over 66ers, against all the artists and musicians and a flea, you said the man in the van is covered, he's not, the man in the van, and every magician and musical group, art group have to have a vehicle to bring it around their equipment and huge vehicles and expensive vehicles, they have to be DOE'd and taxed and paid for and everything else and you're giving them no support whatsoever. You used to be a minister for the arts, I don't know why you're such a set against them, as I mentioned Big Tommy, I don't know if Paddy called you money. I won't take that back, I won't take it back, no, your government, not you personally, your government, look, your government, because you haven't supported them here. When are you going to give them support? Are you going to let them beg? Are you going to drive them and tell them to go look for work elsewhere? They'll get jobs elsewhere. How will they? Are we going to diminish and destroy our artistic industry, our arts industry, our musicians, our bands, our dancing schools, our arts schools, everything else? Yes, and the over 66ers have been punished by this government, but I'm not surprised they are with you. I mean, that is scandalous. Whether they be publicans, whether they be lorry drivers, taxi drivers, as Deputy White Banner said, they are being discriminated against from the very start and they've been further discriminated now with this piece of legislation and you come in offering it here to be a saviour and to be a support mechanism. Those cohorts, you expect the schools to go back and I'm glad that decision has been made. Many of the over 66ers drive buses, school buses, many of them, and it's part-time and it suits some grand and it suits the bus companies as well. Any of the companies that had school buses contracted the bus in are getting a 50% payment, but the individual bus owners that are not contracted the bus in didn't get a shilling. We expect those to be mobilised on the 28th of August and September and to be able to put buses on the road again, have drivers, have them ready, have them MOT'd, DOE'd, sorry, and have them insured and all the checks with the public service vehicles and everything else which are necessary. And how are they going to do it? And the wind? They haven't got a penny. Many of them are just at the last leg, some of them have savings. I have publicans crying on the phone to me and you have the stupidity then of a pub opened if they give nine euro a meal because they haven't. And worse than that then, they were all told last week or 10 days ago that they would be open last Monday week and they weren't told until literally the hours before it. They had their stocks ordered and paid for to reopen again and a further kick in the teeth. These publicans have nothing to live on. Any of them are over 66 and I'm getting the payment because they have a smart pension and all they wanted was if we could make the difference between the pension and the COVID payment of 350 at the time. 10 minutes though, you change and you give the 350 to everybody across the board. I had payments on to me because their kids got it. They only maybe worked four or five hours the weekend. Maybe only worked on a Saturday or Saturday night or Sunday night and they got the full 350 payment and now you're in trouble for finances and you get that out to them when you shouldn't have because they didn't expect it. All you had to do then was go back in the four weeks previous wages and give them what they got and they would have been reasonably happy with that and failed them. So you turn money out like confetti at a wedding or snuff at a week and now you're trying to take it back but you're penalising those cohorts, the over 66s and indeed our actors. And as I said our actors not only contribute, they don't ask anyone for anything, they put up themselves and educate themselves or upskill themselves and they play and adapt and buy the equipment and look after themselves and they give valuable entertainment to the people who are so doing. All they wanted was to be allowed to do that but when the pubs are not going to close and everything else they can't do it. I'm sorry if I went over but I'm so annoyed with the music people and the entertainment industry and the over 66s and this bill doesn't go anywhere to help them and it's a sad day for those people. Thank you.
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