Louis O'Hara (Galway East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this motion. The work of young carers in particular has not been recognised. That needs to change. They need to be supported in order that they can pursue their education and live their lives as young people.

I am going to share the experiences of some carers in my constituency with whom I have spoken in recent days. While this is just a small sample, all of those I have spoken to feel forgotten and totally unsupported. Frances told me about her mother who cares for her father. He has Parkinson’s disease and needs full-time care. She is only entitled to half the carer’s allowance, which is demoralising for the amount of work she does daily. If she was getting the full amount, it would greatly ease the burden when it comes to rising costs and would enable her to get help with other things, such as cleaning, which she cannot do because all of her time is spent caring for her husband. Lorraine cares for her two children with autism and cannot get services for them. She is spending a huge amount of money on private services. She is on carer’s benefit. When that runs out, she does not know what she will do because she has bills to pay. Her hands are tied. She cannot work and, therefore, is considering emigrating. Pauline cares for her 88-year-old mother who needs care around the clock. She was contacted by the Department yesterday. It wants to know what is wrong with her mother and why she needs care. She says the Department made her feel like a criminal. Anne cares for her elderly parents who are both fully dependent. She and her sister put in more than 100 hours work per week caring for them. They both work full time to facilitate paying for private help in order that they can go home to their families and sleep in their own beds some nights. Anne is overwhelmed, exhausted and has not had a break in years.

If she could get some kind of payment, she believes she might be able to save something. The voice of carers, young and old, must be heard and the Government must take action in response. It must increase respite, payments and investment to make sure that people are allowed to stay in their own homes, if that is their wish. The Government must scrap the means test for the carer's allowance. The Government made this promise during the election campaign and it is now time to deliver on it. Carers cannot wait any longer. We have heard today from those who are directly affected by this. I call on the Minister of State to do this as a matter of urgency.

See this speech in context