Dáil Éireann is struggling to cope with the coronavirus. The strictures which the virus has imposed on procedures are stifling.
Dáil attendance has shrunk from a full capacity of 160 TDs to an average of fewer than 20 deputies. Tightening the screw, where once there were multiple Oireachtas committees examining all aspects of our society now just one operates in public: the Dáil Special Committee on Covid-19 Response.
It held its inaugural public sitting last Tuesday - a meeting in which members were forced to gather in the Dáil chamber, as the usual committee rooms fell foul of public health advice on social distancing.