Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that. That particular change in isolation will cost the Exchequer, the tax man, probably in excess of €70 million. To be respectful, on the €290 million the Senator is talking about, given that we have only €800 million to spend this year, I do not believe it is something that is even on the table this year. However, I understand and appreciate the reason she is raising it.

The turnaround for people applying for carer's benefit is at 11 weeks. The turnaround for carer's allowance applications is a little higher at 18 weeks, but as I said to Senator Ardagh's colleague, Deputy O'Dea, that is not something we find acceptable. It is something on which we continually move staff into and out of the Department for the very reason the Senator described, namely, people are busy doing what they are doing, which is caring for somebody they love deeply who has a serious illness. When the information is given to us in one complete format, we try our best to try to turn around the application as quickly as we can, but by the very nature of some of these applications and the complexity of the needs of the person being cared for, it sometimes takes a little longer. The only way I can genuinely tell the Senator how we would improve that is to hire hundreds more people, and that is not something I have the gift within the Department to do at the moment. In terms of what we do, when we have extra resources in different areas because of lulls or peaks during the year, we move staff to the carer section to make sure that the scanning of medical documents happens on a timely basis, that the medical assessments happen with the medical team as quickly as possible and that we turn around the application as quickly as we can.

I admit and acknowledge that 18 weeks is not something we are hugely proud of, but it is because of those complexities that we are now readdressing and looking at changing the application form to try to make it as streamlined and as efficient as we did when we looked at the domiciliary care allowance. We have had huge success with that, and those are not my words but those of the people who are making the applications. It has reduced from what then was probably in excess of 20 weeks to five now and, in a worst case scenario, to nine weeks. I hear what the Senator is saying but we are conscious of the issue.

The automatic enrolment retirement savings system consultation started at the end of August. It will close on 3 November. We did a launch in Dublin but I have three roadshows pencilled in so far. There is one happening in Dublin next week. I think we are doing a second one because the first one in Dublin was oversubscribed. We will have one in Galway and one in Cork. If they are as well attended as the Dublin one will be, we may even go further afield. The most important aspect I am concerned about is that I hear the views of the interested bodies loudly and repeatedly. I want to hear the views and wishes of the people who will be pensioners in 20, 30 and 40 years in terms of what their retirement savings will be if they engage in the automatic enrolment system, which I hope will go live in 2022. That will take place between now and 3 November.

I have just been ably told that the Oireachtas will be getting a briefing similar to the one on the total contributions model, and it will probably happen in the audiovisual room. All Deputies and Senators will be invited to that. It is very important that we hear their views as to what they would like to see, how much they would like people to contribute, for how long, whether there is an opportunity to be able to dip in on a once-off basis and the reason for that. The so-called Strawman proposal is very comprehensive but the reason it is so prescriptive is because it is very easy for people to rip it apart and say they would prefer this, that or the other. As I said, the most important thing for me is engagement from what we could call normal people and not the industry between now and 3 November. We have taken out advertisements in local newspapers, and if there is a roadshow coming near any of the members, I would be grateful if they could help by putting it on their Facebook page and encouraging people to attend.

In recent years we started to equalise the schemes available for people who are employed. This is something Senator Butler has long championed, as far back as when he was first elected to these Houses in 2011, to introduce the same level of supports for people who are self-employed as those who are employed. That process started a number of years ago with the current Taoiseach, then Minister for Social Protection, starting with the invalidity pension. We hope in the years to come to be able to continue that until we have parity of esteem between self-employed and employed people.

Also, we extended the treatment benefits to people who are self-employed that are enjoyed by people who are employed, which is the right thing to do. Someone who is employed and someone who is self-employed makes the same contribution to the Social Insurance Fund. I appreciate they do not make an employer's contribution at the same time but they should not be penalised on the supports available from the State if and when they fall on hard times, either in terms of illness or jobseeker's benefit or a pension. I hope that answers all the questions.