Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That it was done does not necessarily mean it was right. It happened in the context of social welfare. I sat on the other side of the House and voted for it. I voted for something that caused great distress and hardship to people when they returned to Ireland and found that after only a few years away they could not qualify for any social welfare payments. We had to beg and borrow and approach community welfare officers to get a few pounds to keep people going. That is something we cannot visit on those who are returning and who made a major contribution to this country for many years. We are talking in this context about people aged over 70 years. The provisions are to give guidelines. Any person who has made a major contribution to this country and comes back after a period of time should be entitled to the basics. Surely, the basics include a medical card even in the context of the grounds of eligibility. I am concerned that there would be a major move to tighten up the criteria in terms of who can apply in the first place on foot of the definition of "residency" and all that section 5 purports to include in the legislation if passed.

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