Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We are starting to stray beyond the remit of this Department. The request made to us, and the advice received, was to make sure we could provide enough permits for people outside the European Economic Area to fill those roles and complete those hours. Let us be frank here. Some 1,000 permits were made available, but only 138 have been drawn down. That is disappointing when there are people who need 6,000 hours of care across the country. We can all agree that these are the most vulnerable people in our society. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is more than happy to work with the Department of Health or private operators. We meet them all the time. We are having an ongoing discussion about ways we can attract people to Ireland to work in this sector. We think this is a particularly good place to work. We think the roles available are well-paid and provide good conditions. They are stressful, but we are in a difficult period in our economy. On the one hand, it is brilliant that we have effective full employment, but on the other hand, it means we have a tough and tight labour market in all roles, but in particular in the care sector.

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