Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will follow up on some of the issues that were put eloquently by Deputy Denis Naughten. Like many, I share his concern about the situation as it relates to a husband and wife, and the fact that they could be dealing with a six-year period during which money is being taken from a farm. The whole point is about ensuring that family-owned farms are viable and sustainable, and that we do not absolutely hammer people who find themselves in difficult situations.

I know of a case in which someone has applied for the nursing home support scheme for their father. As in many other situations, the paperwork relating to succession was not completed and the person concerned did not meet the five-year criterion. This issue has only arisen in the past couple of months. Michael, the father, is in a nursing home at the minute. I am worried because the backdating situation has not been taken into account. Will the three-year period referred to in the legislation include a period that went before its enactment or will it apply from the point this Bill becomes law? That needs to be revisited because we are talking about the viability of family farms. The timing of this legislation is unfortunate for some people who have no choice but to put their loved ones into nursing homes because they need that level of care. Brian is Michael's son. He and his sister have responsibility for Michael's care but he is not in a fit state to deal with any legal framework and we may just be talking about the provisions of a will. I want the Minister of State to come back to me on this matter. It is about ensuring that people are not hammered harder than needs to happen. We must ensure that the likes of this family farm are sustainable. People are going through difficult situations such as the one I have outlined and they do not need added hardship.

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