Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Regional Group for this important motion and for giving us the chance to debate it. The Government appears to be fudging on this. Support is not good enough without acting and providing the carers with the facility so that they do not have to go through a means test, because many carers are seeing after people out of the goodness of their heart. One thing that people who need care love is to stay in their homes for as long as possible because if they are moved into a community hospital, long-stay setting or a nursing home, they feel like they are in the departure lounge. We need to give those people the dignity that they deserve after giving their lives for our country and bringing it to where we are today.

Regarding the value that these carers bring, I know one brother who has been seeing after his sister for the last 20 years and because his wife is working, as a nurse or something, he will not qualify for the carer's allowance. He is at home every day and he is at the person's beck and call, day and night, 24-7. It is unfair that people who want to care for a relative are means-tested, because they provide a valuable service. Other countries have developed this model to perfection. Since I came here in 2016, we have been calling for people to be cared for in their own homes. It would save the country millions. I believe only one third of the people who are actually caring, fewer than 100,000, are being paid for it, out of 300,000 in total caring.

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