Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

On the same issue, this is a shocking crisis all over the country. The Taoiseach said earlier that the Government's primary role is protecting people's health and caring for people. People are being abandoned. Money is being thrown at this, but we cannot get people to do the work. I salute the carers and the people providing home help, but they are running from Billy to Jack doing what they can in limited time. People are ending up in hospital because they cannot get home care packages. The situation is as bad in Tipperary as it is in Wexford. All over the country, there is a huge shortage.

Christmas Day is approaching. Over Christmas Day and St. Stephen's Day, people will not have a visit from anybody. People will be left to fend for themselves. What kind of a moral compass does the Taoiseach, the Minister for Health and the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, have to do that to old people? There is no point blaming the crisis on the shortage of staff. The HSE should have seen this coming. We have been banging on about in here for years. The Government has thrown money at it throughout the pandemic, but it cannot get the operators. The bottom line is people are suffering and getting sicker and families are struggling. Some of these people do not have families. It is a terrible situation.

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