Paudge Connolly (Cavan-Monaghan, Independent)

I move:

That Dáil Éireann:

notes that:——

— approximately 440,000 people or 11% of the State's population are over 65 years of age;

— of these, approximately 266,000 are over 70 years, one third of whom live alone;

— 25,000 elderly people are in long-stay beds or nursing homes;

— a further 13,000 elderly people who need high to maximum dependency care continue to live at home;

— it is the wish of a large majority of elderly people to receive care at home or in the local community;

— very many families of the elderly make many sacrifices to provide the best possible care for them;

conscious that the inadequacy of the nursing home subvention causes grave hardship for many families;

conscious that cuts in the home help scheme have seriously limited the adequacy of the service;

believing that the failure to abolish the means test for the carer's allowance is a further attack on the most vulnerable in our society;

recognising that day care centres serving the elderly in disadvantaged communities are grossly under-resourced;

alarmed that the failure to mainstream health related community employment schemes has undermined a community-based response to caring for the elderly;

notes with extreme concern the remarks of the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment that families increase their contribution to supporting the elderly with a consequent reduction in State support;

calls on the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to clarify her position; and

demands that the Government immediately put in place adequate resources and comprehensive infrastructure for the care of the elderly.

I wish to share my time with Deputies Gregory, James Breen, McHugh, Sargent, Boyle and Ó Caoláin.

See this speech in context