Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Deputy James Bannon should wait for the crumbs to fall from somebody else's table.

The dramatic cut in the number of medical cards to which I refer was accompanied by hikes in prescription charges, the abolition of the telephone allowance, an increase in DIRT on savings, changes to the household package and the scrapping on the bereavement grant. A sense of security is essential for all of us. It is particularly essential for the elderly because they have a right and an entitlement to some comfort at their stage of life. The Bill will certainly provide some security in terms of their access to medical care. However, the cuts to which I have referred, particularly the abolition of the telephone allowance, have done much to undermine their sense of security. Many elderly persons were reliant on the telephone allowance to pay for their land lines and the security alarms attached to them. This might mean nothing to Deputy James Bannon, but it means a great deal to senior citizens, particularly those in County Longford.

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