Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am not interested in Minister's outpourings and attacks on Sinn Féin. That is par for the course. I asked a direct question about respite care. He should not try to worm his way out of this. He knows this cut is wrong. He has to know. He cannot talk about protecting the vulnerable and then launch an attack on carers, who care, in many instances, for people with profound disabilities.

Does Pat Rabbitte get that? I heard his colleague, Joan Burton, saying to parents who rely on the back-to-school allowance to shop around. How out of touch is she? She clearly does not know how much it costs to get a child back to school these days. Is he now telling carers to shop around? Is he actually that cheap and that glib?

This is not a moment for comedy. This cut of €325 is wrong, indefensible, unfair and indecent. If he has any decency left in him, he should revise this matter and tell the carers he will roll back on it. He must do that. If he does not, there will be sufficient public outcry to force him to reverse it. Do the decent thing, Pat Rabbitte.

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