James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I join colleagues in thanking the Rural Independent Group Deputies for bringing forward this important motion, which I expect to attract cross-party support. It is an issue all Deputies encounter in their clinics and often in their own lives. My grandmother went through a prolonged period of availing of home care before spending time in hospital prior to her death. She would have liked to go back home at the end but that, unfortunately, was not possible.

It is a very real issue that affects people in our constituencies and lives.

As policy makers, we know that we have to deal with the challenges posed by an ageing population. We see it in every aspect, from pensions, health insurance through to planning. We also know that the ESRI's report in projecting forward to 2030 shows that the population is expected to increase by between 600,000 and 1.1 million and that within this population increase the share of people aged over 65 years is expected to go from one in eight to one in six. The number aged 85 years and over is expected to double, while the number living longer and healthier lives is growing rapidly. This is hugely positive for all of us, but, as policy makers, we have to be able to address this issue in terms of service provision.

I shall comment on some of the points made within the motion. There is a note about the increasing privatisation of home help and community care services. We increasingly hear advertisements on radio placed by various providers offering different packages. I shall not make any comment on the efficacy or usefulness of any of the providers, as they could be very good or bad. I do not know, but I do know that the proliferation of such adverts and services demonstrates that the public service is not working. I also know - it does not take a genius to figure it out - that one must be able to afford to avail of private services, as many cannot do. That is an immediate indication of inequality in the system.

We often tend to take for granted that people in a family are helping out in caring. I have seen this in cases in my constituency. Often the State takes it for granted and it may not place the same store on this work, in a monetary and every other sense, but people can be caught in that bind where they are often sacrificing careers and other relationships to care for an elderly family member and not being recognised by the State for doing so. It strikes me that it is imperative the scheme is recognised in law on a statutory basis, like the fair deal scheme, in order that people could avail of what should be an automatic right. Currently, the scheme is discretionary.

Statistics tell us that 10% of people have an unmet need and cannot avail of services. I stress that the figure is probably much higher. Because so many know that they will not be able to avail of the service, they just do not apply. As a consequence, the 10% figure could actually be a lot higher.

I will conclude on a local note. An exemplar in the care of older people is McAuley Place in Naas where Margharita Solon and her team run a fantastic operation. When the Minister of State's predecessor, Deputy Helen McEntee, was in office, she came to visit the centre. I was there on the day she came to inspect the facility. To the Minister of State and everyone esle in the House who has an interest in this area, McAuley Place in Naas is an exemplar on a national scale when it comes to how to do this; older people are living fulfilled lives with dignity and independence, with the services they need on their doorstep to support them at that stage of their lives.

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