Mr. Philip O'Leary:

I thank the Senator for his good wishes. I agree that these anomalies should be outlined.

The HAP is a very recent anomaly because it is a recent payment that has arisen and these anomalies do arise in every system. They should be dealt with as part of a proposal to the Minister, which I hope the board would consider shortly and put a proposal to the Minister for consideration of the overall eligibility and the type of allowances that are available. Perhaps the question of discretion that was raised by Deputy O'Brien would be put to the Minister in a coherent and costed fashion. I am conscious that we have a limited budget, like everything in the State, and be it the health services or education there is not an unlimited amount of money available. Every time we increase the eligibility then there will be an effect in demand and we must ensure we can provide the service to those people who will qualify. These are very important questions and I am grateful to the Senator for bringing the matter up. If we are bringing a proposal we would be very happy to circulate it to the committee for its consideration also.