Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I expect that there will be some increase but it will not go far towards wiping out the deficit. I have repeatedly made the point that the current allocation model of home help hours is unsustainable. The Chairman, as a politician and a practising doctor, will be aware that we face a number of challenges in the area. We do not have the people to deliver the scheme. We have undertaken to prepare a scheme, which will be underpinned by statute and which will be delivered like the fair deal scheme, where everyone looking for access to it will get it and will be fully funded. However, we also need staff. There is a lot of work going on in the background to ensure we meet the terms and conditions necessary for such a scheme. We also need to reduce reliance on home help as it is in its current form, where it is being delivered eight miles north and south, and provide more options for people so that they can age in a better and more suitable environment, such as supported retirement villages. This would reduce the drain on home help hours massively and provide a much more enhanced level of care for people. The Chairman will be aware that the success of Kilmaley retirment village is one of the motivating drivers.