Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

I got some literature from a Fine Gael candidate in the constituency in which I live saying that the party will not proceed with the fair deal. I am not trying to make a political point. I was surprised to see that because, in fairness, I think Deputy Reilly is supporting it and it has great support from older people and their relatives. The introduction of the fair deal will greatly alleviate the pressure on acute hospitals. We do not have the money to procure more beds in the private nursing home sector for the kind of numbers that require them. It is not fair that 90% of the cost of care is paid for by the State if one is in a public bed or in a public facility but if one is in a private nursing home, on average, one has to pay 60% of the costs oneself.

We have a question later about primary care. There are a number of good pilot projects currently under way.

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