David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will make the point again that this was voted on in last year's budget. I do not think there is a Deputy in this Chamber, whether Government or Opposition, who has not been lobbied or received correspondence from parents of children and from older people about this.

I also raised the issue of cancer patients and other patients with terminal illnesses who were promised that medical cards for them would also be examined. When Fianna Fáil was involved in the confidence and supply agreement and was taking credit for all the good things it saw in the budget, but not the bad, the extension of eligibility for the medical card was one of the good things. Deputy after Deputy on the Government side took credit for it. Deputies from Fianna Fáil were falling over themselves to claim credit for the fact that children were going to get medical cards when they were seven or eight years old and more older people would get medical cards, but it has not been delivered. It is a broken promise. We are now being told it might be included in this year's budget. If that is the best I can bring back to the people in my constituency who have contacted me, I do not believe, on their behalf, that it is good enough.

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