Mr. Stephen Mulvany:

The HSE would fully accept the fact that, even if the budget for home help stays exactly the same, as the population grows, effectively, the jam is being spread thinner and, therefore, from the point of view of the individual patient, his or her capacity to access that service is diminishing. The reality is it has not been possible to invest what would be needed over the past ten years or so in home help and we accept that it is absolutely an essential part of the service for many reasons. It is not that we do not seek that resource. It is that resource is not available.