Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State knows family carers have had a very difficult two or three years, but it has always been something that is challenging. It can be rewarding but it undoubtedly offers significant challenges. Millions of euro are saved by the State through the sacrifices and efforts made by the 500,000 family carers. The least they deserve is the opportunity to have some respite. That is not just about reward or recognition but sustainability. It is about their ability to continue caring for their loved ones.

Unfortunately, over the course of the last few years and especially over the course of the pandemic, respite was one of the last things to recover. The Echoin Cork recently reported Elizabeth Maddox, who heads the Castlemartyr Family Carers and Disability Support Group, acknowledging the fact it is still not the "end game" for carers. She said:

I am very lucky because I have a good support system but most carers need a break. Although family carers seem to be over the worst of Covid, it’s not the end game yet. Carers have been locked down even more now. They are often very careful about talking about burnout because they don’t want to lead the person they are caring for to feel like a burden.

However, it is still the case that respite, while improved from the very worst times of Covid, is still not back up to where it was before and the coverage and types of respite available vary significantly from area to area. When you look at the capacity reviews that have been undertaken in recent years as few as one in four is getting adequate respite. We urgently need to address that because it is about sustainability and fair treatment for these carers as well. As a society, we really would be completely lost without them. The 500,000 carers save the State millions upon millions of euro.

I will raise a final point before I finish up. It is something I have come across on a number of occasions, namely, the ability of parents of a child with complex learning difficulties or intellectual disabilities to have a lifelong plan for their child. There is education but there is something of a cliff edge at the age of 18 years, where the services that are there are concerned. The question in every parent's mind is if they outlive them or if they are no longer able to care for them, what happens then? The fact there is not that certainty and that ability to plan into the future causes huge anxiety and fear. It is something we must look at to ensure there is a joined-up plan right the way up.

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