Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Smith for raising this issue. We are all aware of the work that carers do. However, the Department is about giving people a basic income. We increased in last year's budget the means test threshold for the carer's allowance so that more people are able to benefit from it. In fact, we increased it to €750, which is the highest it has ever been. We will continue to review the means test. There is a broader discussion to be had on how we compensate carers for the work that they do. We have to have this conversation and there is no doubt about it. It will involve a number of Departments. I hear what Deputy Smith is saying and, of course, we will look at all of these things in the context of the budget in terms of the basic payment that we provide from the Department.

See this speech in context