Dáil debates

Wednesday, 1 February 2006

Social Services Inspectorate: Motion (Resumed).

 

7:00 pm

Photo of Donie CassidyDonie Cassidy (Westmeath, Fianna Fail)

I endorse everything that has been said by Deputy Sexton. I congratulate the Minister of State on the work he is doing. He is a great friend and colleague and his father before him gave great service to the State as a Member of this House for over 20 years.

The care of the elderly is an area that must be supported by everyone, regardless of party affiliation. I was a member of the Midland Health Board from 1985 to 2002 and I am very aware of the hard work and the dedication of the staff in all our institutions which care for the elderly in Westmeath, Longford, Laois and Offaly. The care being given to our senior citizens in private nursing homes is also second to none. The nursing staff should get gold medals for their commitment and for what they are doing in the interest of our elderly senior citizens. I have great respect for the professionals from the health service who are Members of this House.

I have respect for the Fine Gael Member who contributed to this debate last night. I listened very attentively to the Deputy's remarks and we cannot beat the professionals with the experience coming in here and assisting the Government. That is good oppositional politics. I agree with Deputy Sexton on some of the views made by the Deputy, but I would welcome in the House the expertise displayed in the committees, and the public will appreciate it far more.

The allocation that has been made regarding the long-stay home subvention and additional long-stay bed capacity has to be welcomed. In particular, I welcome the threshold by which a person can now enter a nursing home. If the house is worth €250,000, the person is now entitled to a subvention. There are many people whose parents are in nursing homes who are becoming the new poor in Ireland because their parents did not qualify for a subvention. Parents went into long-term care, hoping to come home as soon as possible, but were left in a situation where they had to sell the family home and spend all the money on care before a subvention was granted. The Minister of State, Deputy Seán Power, as well as the Minister for Finance, are aware of the difficulties in our midland region and have the experience to bring this before the House. I welcome the fact that the threshold is now €500,000 for Dublin and €300,000 for the rest of the country. It has been an enormous assistance and it will leave many people in nursing homes and long-stay institutions with much peace and happiness.

I welcome the efforts being made by the Government on long-stay care, as well as the strongly held views of the Opposition and the professional advice which Members can give the Government. We are all trying to achieve the same result at the end of the day.

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