Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

To come back on the straw man in relation to disability and those additional payments that have been discussed, has the Minister any timeline for that work and when she hopes to have it completed? Are we looking towards the next budget or after it? Particularly when it comes to the cost of disability and the introduction of such a payment, it would be helpful to know what kind of timeline we are working towards. That has been sought for many years. People will be looking at whether it will be in for the budget.

On family carers, we all welcomed the Minister's commitment when we discussed the Social Welfare Bill last year that she would look at the means test for carer's allowance - some type of review. That was very welcome. Last year we had family carers before this committee giving their first-hand experience and the real difficulties they faced in accessing carer's allowance because of the means test. It is important that is looked it. There are many carers providing intensive care at home and they are not able to access that support, especially where a partner or husband is working and the income has a major impact on the means test.

I would appreciate it if the Minister could give us an update on the pension solution for family carers because, every year, carers are ceasing that role and they are not able to access a full State pension. That has been a problem for a long time. An update on that would be welcome also.

An issue I need to raise again and which I have raised with the Minister on many occasions is the case of Brendan Bjorn and his mother, Ms Tracy McGinnis. I believe it will cost very little to ensure that, where a young adult is in receipt of disability allowance, the allowance would not cease immediately on his or her death, even if only in cases where a parent is caring for him or her at home, so that there is not that cliff edge. It exists for domiciliary care allowance, DCA. That continues to be paid up to 12 weeks after the death of the child. I would ask for a little compassion in this case. The Minister has engaged with Ms McGinnis and there was an issue immediately after Brendan's death that was dealt with immediately. All of that is welcome. Perhaps the Minister could look at the sums, even from that hardline approach of what it would cost in the first instance, because I believe it would be very small, especially in the case of young adults or adults who are at home with parents and who are in receipt of the disability allowance, so that on their death there would not be that cliff edge and that it would be the same as is the case for DCA.