Last week Letterkenny University Hospital saw a significant increase in Covid-19-positive attendances and admissions. There were 84 patients with Covid-19 being treated in the hospital last Wednesday and 11 wards were affected by Covid-19 outbreaks. This will no doubt increase even more following the bank holiday weekend just gone. The INMO has called for the HSE to declare the current overcrowding in hospitals as an emergency situation until Easter at the earliest and I echo this call. It is obvious there is a link between mask-wearing and the reduced transmission of Covid-19. Removing the requirement to wear a mask is clearly having a detrimental effect on our hospitals and this must be addressed as well. Will the Tánaiste's Government declare the current overcrowding in the hospitals is an emergency situation and will he do all he can to address the pressures our healthcare workers are under and ensure day surgeries can continue?

According to the HSE, there were 490 patients on trolleys awaiting admission this morning but it is anticipated the majority of those will be in a bed by this evening. Nonetheless, it is a figure that is very high. There are a number of factors contributing to it; it is not just about Covid.

On mask-wearing, the advice from Government and the CMO is very clear, namely, we encourage people to wear masks on public transport, in healthcare settings and also in other crowded indoor settings. However, this sub-lineage of Omicron is very infectious. It is probably 30% more infectious than the previous Omicron variant and for that reason we are expecting to see an increase in cases over the coming weeks. The good news is that Denmark, which was the country to first experience this Omicron-plus sub-lineage, is now seeing cases falling very substantially. We expect that to happen here in a few weeks' time.