Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There are a number of questions there. The Fair Deal review is done and I expect it to be published in the next few weeks. It does not so much make recommendations as suggest different things that could be done to make the scheme more sustainable in the years to come. It then makes recommendations about alternative ways of funding home care in a better way. There are lots of other things like that and it is quite an interesting report. The report also addresses some of the unfairness that may exist, particularly for self-employed people and farmers, in the way people are assessed for the Fair Deal scheme, and makes recommendations in that regard.

On the ALONE campaign, it is absolutely our preference that people stay at home for as long as possible. By and large, it is also less expensive to provide a home care package than to provide a Fair Deal place. The proportion of people aged over 65 going in to nursing homes is actually falling, notwithstanding that the raw numbers are increasing. That is illustrative of the fact that better home care is now available.

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