Luke Flanagan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The reality is that even if the Government did not give a damn about carers, did not care that it is nice to stay at home with one's family where one might live longer and be happier, where everything would work out better for society, and even if the Government ignored all of that and just looked at the money equation, then it is a fairly good deal. It is all about money; nothing else matters. I have been hearing that ever since I came to this House. The Government gives the carers a tenner and they give €50 worth of value to the State. That is a really good deal. One would imagine if there was a chance of getting a deal like that from somebody, one would hold that person high, praise them and cheer them on and say: "Keep doing it because we are getting a good deal here." What do the carers get instead? They get told they should be damned well thankful for getting what they do. Look at what people get in Northern Ireland. I do not give a damn what they get in Northern Ireland. I do not care what they get in Afghanistan or China or the USA. What I care about is whether what they get is enough to survive here. When Government speakers talk about what people get in the North, that is irrelevant. What matters is what it takes to survive here. The State is getting good value but it does not seem to appreciate this.

One would imagine also that if the Government was getting a good deal from somebody, it would not make it difficult for them to strike a deal. I will give an example of a person who wants to strike a deal with the State, who is prepared, for €10, to give €50 worth of value to the State. My secretary wrote to me today to tell me the torture she is going through with this, saying that in regard to the carer's allowance, applications from last December are now being dealt with. That means the average waiting time is 12 months from the date of application. We have had numerous people asking us about the carer's allowance, the most recent application dated 18 December, which is just being dealt with. There are people who want to do this great deal with the Government, those from whom it gains financially, but it will not even deal with them. Nobody, or no Government, could be that incompetent. In a year, it could not get things together to pay somebody for the deal. One would have to conclude there is a policy of hoping these people will go away and stop annoying the Government.

That appears to be the policy. This example of an individual would prove that as far as I am concerned. A lady, who has appealed her decision for a carer's allowance, contacted me. We were told that this week she had failed to pass the medical side of things again. She has cared for her partner full time for more than 18 months and she is in an awful state. Her partner has had prostate cancer since 2007. He underwent radiotherapy where his bowel was damaged and as a result it bleeds on a continuous basis. He has had five operations in St. Vincent's University Hospital and will go for another one in January. His clothes need to be changed constantly and he basically needs 24-hour care. He is only 69 years of age and also has other conditions, including asthma, a heart condition and a major kidney problem. Yet he is refused on medical grounds. The Government should recognise a good deal when it sees one. If it is all about money, it should recognise it. It should forget about the people, we know that has happened. The Government should just think about the money because €60 is a good deal.

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