Rural pubs in Kerry and other businesses are to be closed again after 12 midnight tonight. On the Order of Business last week, I told the Taoiseach I knew the Government was going to close them down again even though we have very small numbers in places like Kerry and along the west coast and it does not merit a closure. I and a lot of people also knew that Dublin was not going to be let open after another week because of the massive numbers. To balance the thing out, ye have all the country closed down. It is going to have massive psychological and financial repercussions for the people, publicans and the customers, as well as the rural people in general, to close them down again. What are we going to do with them? Are they going to be given financial assistance? The talk about allowing 15 customers to be served outside in the open air, seated outside somewhere, tells me that there is no comprehension at all about rural Ireland, not even the weather. If people do not die with the coronavirus they will certainly get pneumonia and die anyway if that is all the suggestion ye have. It is absolutely ridiculous.

What the Taoiseach is in effect doing here is a total blanket shutdown because with our climate, the vast majority of these businesses will not be able to operate. That is a fact. What measures have been put in place by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection to support the many thousands of people who are worried, upset and concerned today, the business owners and the people working in those businesses? It shows how little thought was actually put into this. We heard this morning on "Morning Ireland" and other programmes spokespersons for the Garda Representative Association saying that they were not even informed what powers they are actually going to have tonight. There is total confusion. I am asking the Taoiseach to really knuckle down to this job of work. He cannot just tell people they cannot go to work without making a clear path for where their income is going to come from next week and how they are going to pay their bills.

I refer to what happened with NPHET releasing its statement on Sunday and with the Tánaiste yesterday trying to get equal. I come from a Border county in Louth and we are very concerned about what is going to happen with the coronavirus. It is okay for us in Southern Ireland doing our restrictions at level 3 but are we going to work together as a united Ireland and get this sorted out once and for all? As for this thing about bickering between NPHET and the Government, we all have to put our shoulder to the wheel and work together. I am really frustrated. Every time I go to Carlingford or Omeath, all I see is yellow number plates coming from the North. We are busting our backsides in the South. If we look at all the coronavirus in the North, they are having an epidemic there at the moment. It is important that us in the South, us in the North, NPHET and the Government all put our shoulders to the wheel and work together to get it sorted out.

In response to Deputies Danny and Michael Healy-Rae, nobody in this House wants to close pubs and they need to accept that. Nobody here wants to close pubs. Do the Deputies honestly believe that people wake up in the morning asking how we can close more pubs? No one believes that. No one wants to do that. The real issue is that there was a recommendation that we go to level 5, which would have closed everything bar a number of essential services, or we would go along in accordance with the plan. There is an exponential growth in the numbers. It is low in about eight or nine counties, including County Kerry, but it is growing in those counties too. On the public health front, level 3 will assist those counties in stopping the growth. There is a serious issue for hospitality, including pubs, hotels, restaurants, tourism, music, arts and culture. Covid thrives in congregated settings and where we have audiences. That is just the reality of Covid-19. It is Covid-19 that is doing this. The Deputies need to really be honest about it. It is easy to say "ye", whoever these "ye" are who knew this and are balancing Dublin. The notion that we are doing this because we want to correspond with Dublin is just nonsense and it is unfair. It might play well locally but it is unfair. It is not the truth. No one wants to do this.

In response to Deputy Fitzpatrick, it is a very fair point. I spoke last evening with the First Minister, Arlene Foster, and the Deputy First Minister, Michelle O'Neill. I went through what level 3 meant in terms of movement across county borders. I asked that perhaps they would look at how they could take corresponding measures that would harmonise with the kind of measures we are taking in County Donegal and now nationally. They do not have the same schemes that we have here in terms of restart grants or wage subsidies. They have a wage subsidy scheme, a furlough scheme, but they do not necessarily have the financial firepower to underpin quite a number of the sectors. That is an issue for them and we will be keeping in touch with them on it.

Deputies Tóibín, Carthy, Bruton, Kenny, Cannon and Nolan have not been reached. We will give them priority tomorrow.