Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Okay. The €5 billion was an estimate related to public nursing homes and not private nursing homes. A scheme was set up - I do not know when but under then Minister for Health, Mary Harney - to compensate people who were charged in public nursing homes. The initial estimate was €5 billion. By the time scheme was developed, it came down by €1 billion. In the end, €480 million was paid out. These figures we hear, whether €5 billion, €7 billion or €12 billion, have no validity any more. They were way off the mark. However, there are still cases outstanding.

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