Every adult in the State should be vaccinated by the end of September, the Seanad has been told.

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said that, "despite the challenges, we are consistently one of the top performers in the EU in terms of the speed of our rollout".

Speaking during a debate on the Covid-19 vaccination programme the Minister said “by the end of September we expect to have offered all adults in Ireland a Covid-19 vaccine”.

Hospital Report

“Over the next three months, between April and the end of July, we expect to receive over three times the number of vaccines we received over the first three months of this year.”

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He said nursing home outbreaks had dropped from an average of 35 weekly to two, and coronavirus cases among healthcare workers and those over 85 had dropped 12 per cent in the past two weeks, compared with a 5 per cent drop in those under 85 still waiting for vaccines.

Mr Donnelly said what had happened at the Beacon Hospital “stank of privilege”. Twenty spare vaccines at the vaccine clinic were used to inoculate teachers at a private school which the chief executive’s children attended.

He said a letter is being sent to the board asking for a full account and “whether other vaccines in the care of the Beacon Hospital have gone outside of prioritisation. “These vaccines do not belong to the Beacon Hospital or to any hospital; they belong to the Irish people.”

Mr Donnelly highlighted the challenges in adhering to restrictions and said the focus is still on “targeted suppression of the virus” because of the huge surge across Europe of the B117 variant.

The Government, he said, was talking to unions and employers about unnecessary commutes to work and to the third level sector “regarding various activities that we know are driving what is going on”.

Green Party Senator Róisín Garvey said a nursing home with four new residents received 10 calls from three sections of the HSE to arrange for vaccination. She said there is a disconnect that must be addressed to ensure a shot of vaccine only goes to one person. “My computer science degree is very old but even I could write a programme to see how to use PPS numbers to ensure there is no overlap.”

Discrepancies

Labour Senator Rebecca Moynihan raised a report in The Irish Times on discrepancies in the HSE vaccine figures showing that 220,000 front-line health workers had been vaccinated, while only 80,000 work for the health service.

She said this was a real concern in light of what happened at the Beacon Hospital. During the debate, Senators from Government parties rowed in to support the Minister after Independent Senator Sharon Keogan called for his resignation.

Ms Keogan said there was an “appalling vista” in the health service, with one million people expected to be on waiting lists by the end of the year, 700 unfilled consultancy posts, the cancellation of thousands of appointments to deal with Covid-19, and a “grossly inadequate” increase of 1 per cent in funding for mental health services.

She asked the Minister: “When will you admit you are out of your depth? We are at a point in this crisis where we need a minister for health who is willing to fight to get vaccines for the people of this country.”

The Meath Senator said: “We need somebody who will act with a sense of urgency and provide much needed clarity and leadership.”

Fianna Fáil Senator Lisa Chambers hit out at Ms Keogan, saying: "We do not come to this House to kick other people to elevate ourselves".

The Mayo Senator said Mr Donnelly “is doing a remarkable job and it is amazing he is holding it together, as a person and as a human being, with the workload that is on his shoulders”.

Fine Gael Senator Garret Ahearn said Ms Keogan's comments "are an absolute disgrace" about a Minister who is "one of the most accountable".