Seán Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)

Having listened to the Minister of State, I am slightly disappointed that he has not been more proactive in respect of this amendment. I acknowledge that difficulties can arise. If the Minister stated that the policy of his Department was to ensure as far as practicable that all applications would be submitted within 28 days, it might go some way towards demonstrating that the Department is serious about this issue.

We have been waiting for over a year for the documentation to which the Minister of State refers. Notwithstanding this, departmental officials are well aware of the vast majority of people who are entitled to repayments. The Minister of State argues that he will pass all this documentation to the new body that is being established. This harks back to the other aspect to which I referred earlier in the debate when I stated that this should have been done on an in-house basis. Has work been carried out in respect of breaking down the categories of people to see whether the necessary documentation has been submitted or are we waiting for this new body, which was pushed through earlier to finalise and issue repayments, to begin to examine all the documentation?

One of the merits of having the public sector deal with this issue is that it could have been dealing with it for the past year and finalising everything. Therefore, when the scheme is introduced, the system could be ready to make repayments within 14 days rather than 28 days. Some commitment must be given in respect of ensuring this takes place. It is not good enough for the Government to simply say that it will do its best but that certain individuals may be off work sick. If this happens, we must realise that we are dealing with people who could be dead tomorrow. If a dateline was issued, it would make the senior personnel involved, who will be well paid to carry out this work, prioritise it and get applications within a certain date. This is the merit of amendment No. 4, which will ensure that applications are prioritised. If the Government is not prepared to go down this road — it appears that the Minister of State is not willing to do so — the least he can do is give a commitment in principle that every effort will be made to ensure it is done within 28 days, as referred to in the amendment.

What is the position regarding medical card holders who were unable to secure a place in a public nursing home and, as I noted on Second Stage, whose relations may have been obliged to obtain a loan from a credit union or other financial institution to maintain them in a nursing home? Are there proposals to look after these people? Under the Constitution, they are entitled to care, not only in a public hospital, but in long-term care facilities. They were denied this entitlement because no beds were available and they consequently needed to pay for care. Will the Minister of State examine the category of people who must make this effort?

See this speech in context