Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Can that work with the ETBs be accelerated? If we are going to help more elderly people stay within their own home, which is more cost effective and is generally what people want, there is no other way of doing this. We simply have to increase the number of people who have a level of training as home care workers to cater for people and provide that service. It is absolutely vital. The private ones have a role, but we are overly dependent on them and it is not happening. They are not able to recruit and they are having great difficulty retaining staff. A number of issues are involved. When you talk to people working for private ones, they will tell you that, as will some of the people running them. I ask that active work be done on that.