Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I pay tribute and thanks to all the staff and support workers in our nursing homes and community hospitals who have taken care of many of our elderly family members over these difficult and sometimes lonely times during the past year and throughout the pandemic. These were very difficult times for residents, who were isolated from their loved ones and family members. The staff provided security, comfort and care to many of our family members. I am glad that visits have now been restored on a phased basis to those family members we have missed so much.

I welcome this Bill, which has taken some time to come to fruition. It was included in both this and the previous programme for Government. Since the commencement of the nursing home support scheme, or fair deal scheme as it is more widely known, farmers and small businesses have raised concerns about the charges on their farms or family business assets under this scheme. Some compared it to the death duties that were abolished decades ago. Those charges were abolished because families often had to sell the family farm or small business to pay taxes, which left the younger members of the family without an income or a home.

The family farm or small family business is not used as a capital asset to transfer wealth from one generation to the next, but rather as a means to provide an income for hard work, often undertaken 365 days of the year. We must remember that according to the IFA only 34% of family farms provide a viable income. This Bill recognises that fact. Inheriting a farm is not a road to riches and wealth, but an invitation to work hard for many years to earn enough to provide for one's family and the next generation.

The need for a scheme such as this has come about mainly due to improvements in our health services, which has increased life expectancy for all our people. It was not long ago that average life expectancy in Ireland was in the mid-to-late 60s, but it is now in the mid 80s. Those born in Ireland today are forecast to have a life expectancy closer to 100 years of age. The nursing home support scheme, sometimes referred to as the fair deal scheme, is a scheme of financial support for people who need long-term nursing home care. Under the scheme, a person contributes towards the cost of care and the State pays the balance. The fair deal scheme represents an annual investment of €1.4 billion by the State and it benefits more than 22,000 people.

I am proud to say that the changes included in this Bill were adopted by the Government led by Fine Gael in July 2018, on foot of the proposal from my former colleague, the then Minister of State with responsibility for mental health and older people, former Deputy Jim Daly. He stated at the time that these changes would take away a great deal of stress and worry from affected families and allow them to plan for the future, while allowing them to continue to run family business without the fear of losing it.

I mentioned earlier that this Bill has taken some time to come before the House. I understand that a review of the scheme was published in 2015 by the coalition Government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party. The review recommended reconsidering how productive assets were dealt with in the scheme. The process of reforming this scheme has taken more than seven years, and during that time many families have endured extreme hardship in meeting these charges. Often, they have had to sell parts or all of their family farms, or businesses, which may have been worked on by those families for generations.

Will the Minister of State consider setting up a hardship fund that would repay or not levy some of these charges? I refer to the possibility of it being necessary to sell some farm or business assets to meet these charges and, in that context, the need to ensure these family farms are viable for the next generation. This Bill addresses possible funding and how charges can be levied for nursing home care in respect of farmers and their spouses. However, another group at the heart of the scheme should also be considered for special treatment. Recently, I raised with the Minister of State some concerns from nurses regarding their pay and working conditions, including the Haddington Road agreement and registration charges. No one doubts that nurses were on the front line and carried out sterling work in the last year when providing treatment during the pandemic. They are also at the very heart of the nursing home care system. There is consensus among people that nurses are undervalued and underpaid in our health system. There is also a similar consensus that they played a vital role in the treatment of many of our elderly people during the worst days of the pandemic.

There is a belief that the Trojan efforts and contributions of nurses must be recognised and rewarded. While I understand the complications and knock-on effects associated with giving a special pay award, I suggest that we might be able to examine other factors in respect of their pay and conditions of employment. One possibility might be for us to examine the possibility of offering a special deal to nurses. I would love to think that we could introduce amendments to this Bill on Committee Stage to provide for a special treatment package under the nursing home support scheme for nurses who have worked so hard during this pandemic. One potential proposal would be to look at the three-year rule for charging. It might be possible to change that criterion to a two-year charge for the first year. However, that is only one potential method that could be applied. The Minister of State and her advisers may be able to come up with some other package to demonstrate our nation's gratitude to all nurses who have worked on the front line during this horrific pandemic. I support this Bill and I hope the Minister of State and her advisers might take on board some of my suggestions, as well as amendments, on Committee Stage.

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