Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We welcome this long-awaited legislation. As colleagues have stated, the IFA, other farming organisations and business organisations have been campaigning for changes to the nursing home support scheme for many years. Their campaign pointed out that people who had built up assets from nothing over a lifetime are having those assets held against them when they try to get care in their old age. Many people have said to me that they worked hard and paid taxes all their lives but when they needed a service at the end of their life, they had to take out a chequebook and pay for it. That is how people feel about the scheme that has been in place for many years. It was christened the fair deal scheme but, for many, it was not very fair at all. The essence of what we need to address in this legislation is ensuring we bring fair play back into the system.

I welcome the three-year rule that will apply in respect of farmland and other assets. Up to now, such assets were subject to a 7.5% per annum charge for as long as their owner was in a nursing home. Of course, the issues with nursing homes do not stop there. There is a great deal of work to be done in this regard and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, is aware of that. We need a review of how the system works. Clearly, it does not work properly for many people and there are issues that need to be addressed. Many owners of smaller nursing homes have long been saying that there needs to be a round-table discussion on how we can resolve the issues and try to create a fair deal for everyone involved. That must include the providers, particularly in areas where they are under stress.

The issue of home help and home care provision is linked to all of this. Many people have difficulty getting proper home care packages in place for elderly loved ones and people who are returning from hospital. It is an issue that has devastated people across the country, when they are on waiting lists and cannot get the level of service they require. Sometimes, people have a level of provision, perhaps for a couple of hours a week, but if they deteriorate and need more, the family is told help will have to be hired privately. That is simply not appropriate. People work hard, pay taxes and are loyal to the State throughout their lives. The least they should expect when they come to the end of their days is that the State is there to provide for them.

The work the Minister of State has done on this legislation is welcome. It represents an advance on the current situation and is something that has been lobbied for at length. However, there is much more to be done. I encourage her to look at all the remaining issues and to address, with speed, as many of them as possible.

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