Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Thankfully we are all living longer and most of us will live independently for the rest of our lives. Fewer than 5% of all the elderly require care late on in life and all parties agree that every effort should be made to facilitate this. The nursing homes support scheme, the fair deal scheme, was introduced in 2009 and provides financial support towards the cost of long-term nursing home care. Under the scheme, people who need nursing home care have their income and assets assessed and they make a contribution towards the cost of their care based on assessment. The average age of our population is growing year on year, and in 20 years' time it is estimated that there will be 1 million people aged over 65 living in Ireland. As a society, we need to prepare for the implications of an ageing country, and that means resourcing services, supporting carers and investing in research.

We have to bear in mind that long-term care is expensive and a new and emerging trend in Ireland's demographic profile is the substantial increase in the number of people over 85 years. Fianna Fáil recognises the concerns many families have in regard to the fair deal scheme and how it impacts on their farm. We agree it is vital that the rules around residential care for older people do not undermine the family farm model. The programme for Government recognises the discrimination under the scheme against farm families and small businesses and it pledged to make changes. It is critical that this commitment be honoured. The scheme must work for everyone, including the farm families, small and medium enterprises, the self-employed, the PAYE worker and the retired person.

The Irish Farmers' Association claims the nursing homes support scheme, with the potentially high liability on farm assets, is creating uncertainty and anxiety for many farm families and that the viability of the family farm will be undermined or lost while meeting the cost of long-term care. Many farm families are opting not to avail of the scheme, putting themselves under severe financial stress to find money to cover the cost of care in the short term. Family farms are passed down from generation to generation and no one wants to be of the generation responsible for making the farm non-viable for the next generation. The pressure is immense and must be recognised.

The uncertainty created for farm families by the potentially uncapped liability in the financial assessment of farm business assets, when the farm has not been transferred or when the asset has been transferred but for less than five years, is causing significant stress for older farmers and their families at an already difficult time. Many farm families want to try to take care of a loved one at home for as long as possible, but they are concerned that if they do they will be exempted from qualifying for the three year cap on the farm asset.

When families discover that a family member needs full-time care that involves moving the person into a nursing home, time factors are very important. The valuations required, be it of the principal private residence or the family farm, slow up the whole process. The fair deal currently takes six weeks for a decision once all the relevant paperwork is in place. Fianna Fáil is committed to the development of a national strategy for the long-term care of our older people. This will include an analysis of current and future arrangements for the funding and financing of this care.

I thank the Rural Alliance for bringing this motion forward. As this is nursing homes week, I acknowledge the role played by the private and voluntary sectors as the main providers of long-term care under the fair deal scheme. They are also major employers in local communities.

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