Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I say this with all due respect to Mr. Harty and his organisation's members. I am taken by some of the points set out in its pre-budget submission. However, from my perspective it has zero credibility in making an argument for social inclusion or against exploitation or pressure on the front line if the organisation or any of its members supports the exploitative practice of zero-hours contracts, which disproportionately affect poor people and women in that sector. It is beyond a joke for Mr. Harty to argue for incentivising care work if he is prepared to stand over zero-hours contracts, which are a scandal in the system. My concern is as follows. This is the reality. I and the party I represent will back carers 200% because we know they have been the Cinderella of the health-care system. They have been ignored and put under unbearable and unacceptable pressure. Mr. Harty needs to be clear that under no circumstances will I or my party support any outfit providing any service that depends on such an exploitative regime. I want him to bring that message back to his members.

The Government has made a whole raft of cuts affecting carers, people with disabilities and so on. That screams that we have a society that talks a lot about care work but essentially does not value it and regards it as a second-class form of work which has traditionally been done by women. That is absolutely wrong. We need to put a premium on those services and on that work in our society. It is bizarre for representatives of Home and Community Care Ireland to come in and talk about incentivising that sector and make arguments for taxpayers' support for that sector through private operators who will exploit their workforce in turn. We will not agree on this point, but I cannot let this opportunity go to make it crystal clear to Mr. Harty and I hope he will bring the message back to his organisation.

If we have time, it would be very helpful for Mr. Dunne to rehearse the analysis of the fair deal scheme. Deputy Dooley raised a contrary scenario and I would be interested in teasing that out. I commend carers on the invaluable service they provide.

I will address the representatives of the IFA. I believe Mr. Doyle has very clearly burst the urban myth - literally - that the children of every farmer are supported by grants and are somehow fiddling the system. That is deeply inaccurate and insulting to the farming community, whose children are just as entitled to a crack at education as any of the rest of us. I am particularly interested in the taxation issues the IFA raised and how they disproportionately hit farmers. I ask Mr. Doyle to address that.

I am very well aware of the work of the Alzheimer Society of Ireland and the pressure its members are under. I ask Mr. Martin to outline what has happened to his society's members over the past three or four years. I apologise for being lengthy.