Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)

Last year on 6 April, the Minister, Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív, announced funding for this scheme. The following day was budget day and the scheme was closed down. The Minister announced the re-opening of the scheme on 6 October. Eleven working days later my office rang the Department to discover if applications were being accepted and was told the scheme had closed. I believe it is open again but is dealing only with applications made before 21 October.

I want a commitment from the Minister of State, Deputy John Curran, that in the budget of 9 December this scheme will not be closed again. I also want a commitment that those persons who made an application after 21 October will have their applications dealt with and that funding will be in place for them. Elderly people are worried. They do not know whether the scheme is open or closed. The Minister of State is pulling wool over their eyes. He is using the old Fianna Fáil spin again - it is open one day, closed the next. It is a bit like the grant for older people. In my county alone, every Deputy was out announcing the wonderful scheme and asking elderly people to go and apply for it. The county council has €7 million in approvals and got €600,000 from the State a few weeks ago. Is the scheme open or closed? Will it stay open or will it be closed in the budget in December?

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