Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

We had a number of pilot projects throughout the country providing these home care packages and the feedback suggested they worked exceptionally well. We decided, on that basis, to increase our investment from 1,100 to 3,000 home care packages throughout the country.

The Health Service Executive and also the private sector provide this service and competition must be welcomed in this area. In some cases the private sector may provide a more flexible service. It is important that we continue to invest in this and if we reach a point where this service can be provided VAT free, all the better and all the more money we will have to spend to provide home care packages for more people throughout the country.

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