Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy hit the nail on the head in terms of allowing people to live independently and supporting them to do so. That is the first choice for people. They want to be kept in their homes. I acknowledge that 80% of the grant aid comes from the Department, with 20% a key allocation from the local authority. We will, towards the end of this year, review the thresholds. The various grants have different thresholds. One progressive move that was piloted in a few counties and which we will be implementing is that the three main grants will be under one form. That will make it easier for people to understand and make the grants more accessible.

It can be hard when demands and needs are great and means thresholds are set because there is always going to be a difficult case outside the threshold. That is difficult but we will do our best to review it and accommodate as many people as we can. It can be seen from the uptake of the grants that they are strong. It just shows society is using them and they are making a difference. We will work to try to keep rolling out the grants as quickly as we can. I would also note that if there is any spare money, it is often allocated to local authorities for this purpose because it is providing a considerable service to people and their lives. I acknowledge and note what the Deputy said about building regulations.