Gabhaim buíochas leis an Cheann Comhairle as a fhocail dúinn ansin. Today's HIQA report paints a worrying picture. It pointed out that, since 2019, 50 nursing homes have closed their doors, causing the loss of more than 1,500 beds at a time when our older population is growing rapidly. This crisis seems to be escalating. We had 14 closures of nursing homes last year alone, which resulted in more than 400 beds being lost from the system. It is not just in the private or community sector. We now have 1,000 fewer public beds than we had a decade ago. Alternative home care options simply do not exist while thousands are on waiting lists. Community and private nursing homes are saying the same thing about rising costs, staffing issues and rising complexity of care making many of their homes unviable. Sinn Féin has proposed to reset the balance, invest in more public capacity, increase funding for hospitals to lease more nursing home beds and to review the fair deal pricing mechanism to recognise the cost of complex care. Some of these providers have blamed Government policy for their closure. What will the Government do to respond to the fact we have seen a drastic reduction in nursing home beds at a time when we need them? Thousands have been lost.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle. I think the statistics he outlined about the level of activity are quite significant. I am conscious that there are many staff in various Departments who are very enthusiastic in responding to the 52,000 parliamentary questions - I say that in jest. We have to remember the people who toil in the offices across the public service to do their best to get transparency and to answer the questions. We thank them for that work. It was a very useful summation, which reflects the positive productivity of this House and democracy. Aontaím go hiomlán leis an méid a dúirt an Ceann Comhairle. Tá súil agam go mbeirimid go léir beo ag an am seo arís. Is é an saghas meoin atá agam féin ná go mbeimid anseo roimh an Nollaig seo chugainn. B'fhéidir nach mbeidh gach éinne eile den tuairim chéanna.

The closure of nursing homes is distressing for residents and their families. It puts pressure on local health services and social care facilities. We are conscious of the financial challenges faced by the nursing home sector. That is why we have provided substantial support to nursing homes over the pandemic and beyond the pandemic. We have the fair deal scheme, which is a significant scheme that facilitates the provision of nursing home supports.

More than €40 million in additional funding has been provided this year in respect of that.

I wish everyone well as we break for Christmas and thank all the staff in Leinster House for the great work they do and support they provide.

On this, the last sitting day before the Christmas break, I welcome to the Public Gallery, Finola Cassidy, the tireless campaigner from the Irish Thalidomide Association, which is a persistent and courageous group of survivors who yesterday said "As the Dáil year ends ... sadly there is no end ... to the Thalidomide saga". It has been 62 years since the drug thalidomide was withdrawn from the market. We know the awful consequences of the use of that drug for survivors. Survivors want to see an end to their endless quest for justice. Australia offered its thalidomide survivors an apology this year. The Tánaiste has been closely engaged with this so I ask him now, in December, whether he will follow the example of countries such as Australia, offer an apology and, crucially, commit to restarting negotiations with the thalidomide survivors in January, so that survivors and their surviving parents can at last see an end to their quest for justice and a resolution of their situation in the new year.

I am also extremely frustrated with what has transpired. We started a mediation process and it should never have broken down. We were looking at, first, dealing with the health dimension so that there would be absolute provision of healthcare benefits for victims of the thalidomide scandal, whole-of-life care in respect of housing adaptation and so forth, and a third aspect that was to be discussed through mediation. The Government entered that in good faith. I share the Deputy's view. I would like to see negotiations restart early in January to get this issue dealt with comprehensively once and for all.