The Taoiseach just confirmed that this is not extra money and that it is a matter of choosing between toilets and HEPA filters. That is an absolutely scandalous position that he has been trying to avoid spelling out all afternoon. I have been listening to him.

In any case, I want to ask a question about the sneaky fine print with regard to the announcement made by the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, which brings in a new rock bottom pandemic unemployment payment, PUP rate of €150 per week, which is less than the dole and far below the poverty line. It is a lump of coal in the stockings of those hospitality and entertainment workers who have lost their jobs due to the new restrictions. The PUP should be properly restored at €350 per week for all. The question now is if those who lost their jobs in the past weeks due to the restrictions and had to sign on to regular unemployment allowance as the PUP was closed will be allowed to switch to the PUP and get the higher rates or, as seems to be implied by the Minister's press statement, are they stuck on the lower rates because they were let go a few days too soon?

The Deputy has consistently sought throughout the pandemic to paint a dismal picture of employment in this country and that the Government is somehow negligent. He needs to acknowledge that our economy is the fastest recovering economy in the European Union. We had the fastest jobs growth in quarter 3 of any EU member state. I never hear the Deputy say that in this House, because he cannot.

What does the Taoiseach expect me to say?

I expect you to acknowledge the fact that hundreds of thousands of people have gone back to work in the past number of months because of sound economic policies.

Through the PUP, EWSS and other initiatives, we kept businesses and employment intact, but all I get from the Deputy every day is one tale of misery after the other. One would imagine there were thousands of people out of work all of the time.

There are thousands of people out of work.

The bottom line is this: the Minister has reintroduced PUP for those who are going to lose work as a result of the measures we introduced last week.

Thank you, Taoiseach. The time is up.

What if they lost their jobs two weeks ago?

There are more vacancies now in our economy than there were in 2019, pre-pandemic. Maybe the Deputy should absorb that.