Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

Caring for another person, especially on a full-time basis, can have a huge impact on the carer and his or her family. While it can be a very rewarding experience, it often involves sacrifices, particularly in employment opportunities, and it can also affect the carer's own health. While the work of carers can be unseen, the important and valuable role played by them in society has been extensively recognised by Government in recent years.

The Government is acutely aware of the sacrifices made by carers and we have sought to make many improvements in services and supports for those carers. In regard to income supports, in budget 2009 the rate of carer's allowance for those aged 66 or over was increased by €7 to €239 per week and for those aged under 66 by €6.50 to €220.50 per week. These increases took effect this January. Recipients of carer's allowance are also eligible for household benefits, free travel and the respite care grant. Since 1997, weekly payment rates to carers have greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes such as carer's benefit, half-rate carer's allowance and the respite care grant have been introduced and extended.

The means test for carer's allowance has been significantly eased over the years and is now one of the most generous means tests in the social welfare system, most notably with regard to the spouse's earnings. Since April 2008, the income disregard has been €332.50 per week for a single person and €665 per week for a couple. This means that a couple with two children can earn in the region of €37,200 and qualify for the maximum rate of carer's allowance, as well as the associated free travel and household benefits. A couple with an income in the region of €60,400 can still qualify for a minimum payment, as well as the associated free travel and the household benefits package. These levels surpass the Towards 2016 commitment to ensure those on average industrial earnings continue to qualify for a full carer's allowance.

From June 2005, the annual respite care grant was extended to all carers who are providing full-time care to a person who needs such care, regardless of income. The rate of the respite care grant has also been increased to €1,700 per year in respect of each care recipient since June 2008. In June 2006, the number of hours for which a person can engage in employment, self-employment, education or training and still be considered to be providing full-time care for the purposes of carer's allowance, carer's benefit and the respite care grant was increased from ten to 15 hours per week. It is estimated that the combined expenditure on carer's allowance, carer's benefit, the respite care grant and half-rate carers will be €650 million in 2009.

It is extremely important to note that carers need more than just income support and, in particular, they need community health services to assist them in their caring role. The Government's objective of continued development of community-based services for older persons is reflected in the funding given in recent times. The total additional funding allocated for such services by the Department of Health and Children was in excess of €210 million over the three-year period 2006-08, which included, for example, €120 million given for the new home care package initiative and €55 million in new funding to expand the home help scheme nationally.

This year, the HSE will continue to promote community and home-based services which directly benefit both clients and carers throughout the country. It expects to provide, for example, in the region of 12 million home help hours, benefiting 54,000 people; 4,700 home care packages, benefiting 11,500 people; and 21,5 00 day and respite care places.

Another important service for carers is the ability to take a break from caring. In this regard, significant residential respite care continues to be provided in public community nursing units, including community hospitals and long-stay residential units across the country. Over 700 designated respite care beds are provided nationally in these units. It is estimated that approximately 19,000 people benefit over the course of a full year, based on an average length of stay of two weeks per person. Another area where the HSE is involved is in working closely with carer organisations in supporting older people in their own communities through service level agreements, with a view to delivering services both nationally and locally within its budget and overall health policy priorities. For example, in 2008, almost €2 million in additional allocation was provided between the Alzheimer's Society and the Carers Association.

I appreciate that it is disappointing for carers and the people for whom they care that we are not in a position to publish a strategy at this time. I met some of their representatives earlier this week to inform them of this difficult decision taken by Government and they made me aware of the frustration they feel, a frustration we all share. However, faced with the current economic situation — the House will be very much aware of the Exchequer returns issued yesterday — it is not possible to set targets or timelines which can be achieved. Publishing a strategy would be to make false promises to carers, promises we do not have the money to implement. I believe that carers deserve better than that. It is important to be honest in the commitments we make. Publishing a strategy which we could not hope to implement in the short or medium term would simply be dishonest and a betrayal of trust. The Government made a commitment to social partners and the carer representative groups at the outset that a national carers' strategy would not be merely a paper exercise.

I wish to acknowledge all those who took the time to make submissions as part of the public consultation process and to assure them their submissions were considered in detail by the working group and will inform our thinking in the future. The Departments of Social and Family Affairs and Health and Children, including the Health Service Executive, are committed to providing support and services for carers and to working with the carer representative groups to deliver services in a more effective way to assist them in the valuable work they do.

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