Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this motion regarding young carers. Sixty-seven thousand children - let us call them what they are - provide regular care for adults. They do so in an unpaid capacity. It is a burden young people should not have to face that impacts their development and, often, their mental health. One in four of them goes to school hungry and without food because there is simply not enough food in the house.

While caring for a family member will of course impact young people more as regards their development, this role impacts on carers of all ages. A carer provides significant care to somebody in need of care in the home due to illness, disability or frailty. I have been dealing with the case of a woman who is getting old but is still the carer for her grandson, and has been since he was three years old. He is now 19. She became her grandson's guardian and carer due to unforeseen issues and has provided all the support he needed. The young man has an autism diagnosis, dyspraxia, profound learning difficulties and various mental health challenges. He is and has been a handful for her. To this day, he requires support with washing and general personal hygiene and becomes disorientated easily. His grandmother stepped in. If she had not, the burden would have fallen on the State, as we well know. In January of this year, her carer's allowance was cut as it was determined that the young person being cared for did not require full-time care and attention. She has appealed this. I am supporting that appeal but we were told we can now anticipate waiting 23.5 weeks for a decision on the appeal, and we cannot be sure that this desperately needed payment will be reinstated.

I fully support the motion but I must ask the Minister why we make things so difficult for these people who really are the unsung heroes of our country.

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