Yesterday, the Taoiseach announced what amounted to an indefinite postponement of the reopening of indoor hospitality. At this stage, there is no clear plan or new date for when that sector will open. Some 24 hours later, there are still many unanswered questions. While I accept that this is a challenging situation, the public should be entitled to basic information on the background to the shocking announcement the Taoiseach made yesterday. I would very much appreciate him answering some of my questions. I am posing these questions not just for me or other Members in the House but for the many thousands of people whose livelihoods depend on this extremely important sector, many of whom have not been able to open their doors or return to work in 16 months.

On the Monday before last, 21 June, the Chief Medical Officer, CMO, announced that the Delta variant accounted for 20% of Covid-19 cases reported in the previous week. He stated that the figures demonstrated "a concerning increase in transmission of the Delta variant". Did he raise these concerns about the proposed reopening of hospitality with anyone in the Government at that point or at any point this week? The Government seemed to be briefing that there was likely to be a postponement of that reopening. What action has been taken in that regard and when did the CMO alert the Government to this matter?

In the CMO's letter to the Minister for Health published yesterday, he referred to the revised national immunisation advisory committee, NIAC, advice that those under 40 should have the option to receive either an AstraZeneca or Janssen vaccine but it is unclear if that advice was factored into the modelling. Will the Taoiseach confirm whether the modelling published by NPHET incorporates the revised vaccination programme?

The Tánaiste discussed this matter on the radio earlier. I made the point that the Government has highlighted the minority of EU countries that operate a Covid-19 pass for indoor services. Does the Taoiseach accept that these countries planned for this system in advance and that the majority facilitate the use of PCR and antigen testing in order that they do not discriminate against unvaccinated people, who are predominantly younger people? In that regard, how can the Government stand over the fact that unvaccinated younger people will be working in bars and restaurants where they will be unable to sit down for a meal or a drink? The Tánaiste said this morning that retail workers are not vaccinated. That is true, but they are not banned from entering shops.

What work has been done on this? When does the Government expect to be in a position to have legislation ready for this new plan? How long is it likely to take to finalise it?

Again, the Delta variant has been described as a cloud on the horizon for quite some time. We got advice from which we formulated the original opening in July and at that stage we were told we were in a low- to medium-risk scenario. The Delta variant had not quite penetrated here at that point but everybody knew in the days leading up to last weekend that there were issues arising in the context of reopening. The clarion calls all weekend were that we should bring forward the meetings in order to get an early decision and not to have the hospitality industry waiting until Thursday or Friday for that decision by the Government. We brought forward those meetings. The results of modelling we received from NPHET and the group led by Professor Philip Nolan on Monday certainly makes the decision to pause the reopening of the hospitality industry the correct one. I ask the Deputy if she agrees that on the basis of that modelling alone, a decision had to be taken to pause and delay the reopening of the hospitality sector.

The further advice given in respect of vaccination is going to give rise to challenges. As the Deputy knows, the Government's original position in late May was that vaccinations would be a factor in permitting access to domestic access to facilities and services. We now have a significant challenge with respect to indoor hospitality. What NPHET is saying, very clearly, is that indoor activity poses the greatest risk, particularly indoor hospitality. We know that from previous waves of the pandemic. The challenge now as we engage with the hospitality sector is to see if we can work our way through this in order to facilitate the reopening of hospitality. The threshold being set by NPHET is very high and it will be very challenging in itself when it comes to non-reproducible and enforceable elements. We are committed to examine this matter further and to engage with the industry on it.

The NPHET letter and the modelling have been published. The significant shock was in respect of the modelling, with NPHET indicating the very high numbers that could arise as a result of the spread of the variant. On the plus side, it is clear that the faster we can get people vaccinated, the more effective that weapon will be against the Delta variant and the effects of the pandemic. This matter will be under review by NPHET as the weeks go by. In particular, NPHET will follow what is happening in the United Kingdom.

I asked the Taoiseach specific questions and he has not answered them. I will ask them again. How long does he expect it will take to devise a Covid-19 pass from scratch? What is the timescale the Government has in mind in that regard? Why is the Government not engaging with the Opposition on this matter? It has not organised any briefings since last December. The latest data on the Department's website dates from April. How can the Taoiseach expect us to work collaboratively on this when he does not include the Opposition and provide the most basic data that we require?

I put it to the Taoiseach that action must be taken on this quickly. The Government needs to be very clear with the industry about what exactly is being proposed. It must also be clear with the public and the Opposition. I ask that consideration be given to other measures that would help mitigate the spread of the virus in indoor settings. I refer, in particular, to ventilation in this regard. Measures implemented in other countries in this regard include better mask-wearing and reducing numbers. What consideration has been given to introducing such measures?

The Deputy is being slightly disingenuous about briefings. I have had ongoing discussions with people. When things are going well with Covid-19, the Deputy never refers to the pandemic or seeks a briefing. That seems to be the rule of thumb. When challenges emerge, Deputies pile in. That tends to be the nature of the exchanges on Covid-19.

There have been no briefings provided at all this year.

We can leave that to one side. A briefing will be organised. The Deputy had a discussion with me not so long ago and arranged a briefing for me from the zero Covid group for which she was advocating. I met that group.

That was last year. It is a long time ago.

The Deputy's position all along has been that we should not open indoor hospitality at all. Let us be honest. That is her position.

There has been no briefing this year.

The Deputy is having it both ways.

The Taoiseach cannot deny there has been no briefing this year.

The story changes every day.

She advocates zero Covid one month and something else the next. I agree with the Deputy about other measures and we must consider them for the hospitality industry, including testing and ventilation. Recommendations have been made on the ventilation for premises across the board because that is an important issue.