Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

As Minister of State with responsibility for older people, I stress that my priority and the priority of the Government is to ensure that older people can remain with the people that they love and in their homes and communities for as long as possible. The difficulty we currently face is that there is no statutory scheme. There is no framework for the provision of home help. While it has been developed over the years, it is very much on a county-by-county basis. It is therefore important that we provide a framework and ensure that it is sustainable, equitable and regulated in an appropriate manner. This will take time but I am also conscious that it cannot go on for seven years. We certainly will not allow that to happen.

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