Patricia Ryan (Kildare South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his response. I will not say to him I am over the moon. I am anything but over the moon. I am very disappointed. As Deputy Tully has said, our population is ageing. As Sinn Féin spokesperson for older people, I deal with older people every day. These are people who may not be able to get up a flight of stairs, to get to a bathroom or to get outside their doors because they do not have ramps or handrails. Sometimes the simplest of things would make life better.

I take on board what the Minister of State says about bringing the Bill back in 12 months. I beg him to look at it, to bring it back sooner than that and to do something constructive with it. It is highly necessary we do not have people lying on their sitting room couches, or on beds in their sitting rooms, with no access to a sitting room proper because it has become a bedroom. People come to the door of my constituency office every day, and Deputy Ó Broin said to the Minister of State that we all probably have the same kinds of people coming to our offices. I have no doubt the Minister of State is a good person, but good people do not solve problems unless they start shouting for the needs of these people. I do not want to come in here shouting and screaming about what we need. I think the Minister of State is well aware of what we need. In south Kildare, which I represent, he is more than aware of what we need. The local authorities in County Kildare have been doing the very best they can to help me in my constituency. Unfortunately, they are not given the funds or the resources.

I know I am going off topic but Deputy Ó Broin spoke about the housing assistance payment, HAP, and referred to waiting lists of maybe 15 weeks. It is 16 weeks in Kildare. I meet people inundated with such issues.

I plead with the Minister of State to have some consideration and to do what he can to bring the Bill forward. I thank him for his time.

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