Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I do not propose to accept Deputy Pringle's amendment. Deputy Ó Snodaigh made the point very clearly, so I do not need to repeat it. It is a question of a name change that reflects more clearly what carers do and it has been very positively received.

Deputy Naughten made a very convincing case. I advise him to do as I suggested to Deputy Ó Snodaigh and raise the matter at the committee but I accept the Dáil's term is limited. I will not take on the individual case but I would be interested in the Deputy forwarding details of the case for it to be examined by the policy unit. What is required is a change of policy and to assess the implications in terms of change. If there is time, the matter could, by all means, go to the committee for discussion. While I will not accept Deputy Naughten's amendment, I am prepared to have the policy unit examine the matter in a speedy manner to determine the logic of the argument. As the Deputy said, it would be exceptional but it would be necessary to put a structure around it. There is a logic to the 15 hours but Deputy Naughten has made a good and strong argument and I would like the policy unit to examine it to see whether there is a need to change policy in that regard rather than just to treat it as an individual hard case. At this stage, I am not prepared to accept the amendment but I hope Deputy Naughten will accept the good intentions I have expressed in terms of dealing with the issue in the manner outlined.

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