Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome members of Family Carers Ireland to the Gallery. I am sure there are carers here as well. We really appreciate their attendance here today. I note the Labour Party motion, which sheds light on a very important matter we absolutely must tackle and deal with. I thank the House for the opportunity to speak on this motion and on the important role young carers play in Ireland today. I thank my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Foley, for her comprehensive remarks earlier which showcased the extent of the work that is being done and will be done by the Government to support carers. The Minister's remarks made it clear this Government places extraordinary value on the work done by carers and is committed to continuing to develop these supports, as clearly reflected in the programme for Government.

We are acutely aware that carers, particularly young carers, have a complex variety of needs, including social and educational requirements, that must be addressed by a whole-of-Government Department approach. In that spirit, my colleagues and I across government are committed to working together to address these needs and to provide the appropriate supports that carers, especially young carers, need to ensure they feel supported. It is vitally important we take the time to listen to the voices of carers and hear their stories, experiences and hopes for the sector. The programme for Government has made great strides in responding to many of the concerns that have been raised. This will continue to guide the Government in how we support carers going forward.

The Minister referred earlier to financial commitments such as raising the carer's support grant to its highest ever rate; the extension of the carer's benefit to the self-employed for the first time; the increase in the earnings limit from €450 to €625 after tax; and, of course, the gradual phasing out of the means test for carer's allowance which will take place throughout the lifetime of this Government. The programme for Government also includes commitments around access to employment, training and education supports. This will be led by the Department of Social Protection dormant accounts fund action plan 2024 and by the Department of Education well-being policy and framework.

In March 2024, an interdepartmental working group examining supports for family carers was established. The working group is chaired by the Department of Social Protection, with membership of the group including officials from the Departments of Health and Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. The work of the interdepartmental working group will be informed by a broader review of means testing under way by the Department of Social Protection, the national carers strategy led by the Department of Health and work being carried out by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth under the action plan for disability services 2024-26 to increase family resilience and provide extra supports for family carers. The interdepartmental group will report its findings to the Ministers for Health, Social Protection and Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.

I wish to highlight the health and social care supports provided by the State that help to support family carers, including young carers. The Minister, Deputy Foley, spoke earlier about the carer's guarantee, which aims to standardise supports for family carers regardless of where they live in the country. Services such as home support, personal assistance, day centres and Meals on Wheels support people with care needs in receipt of those services and their family carers, empowering them to take a break from their caring role and look after their own health and well-being. The Government has increased investment in home support services for older people from €495 million in 2020 to approximately €833 million in 2025. Delivery of home support hours has increased from 17.9 million hours in 2019 to more than 24 million hours in 2025, providing support to 57,000 people in receipt of home support services. Funding for Meals on Wheels and daycare services has been maintained for budget 2025, allowing more than 300 Meals on Wheels organisations and almost 300 HSE-funded daycare centres to operate throughout the country.

Respite care is a vital part of the toolkit to support carers. Respite care may involve providing alternative family or residential care for, inter alia, older people, people with physical and intellectual disabilities, mental health conditions, chronic conditions, palliative care needs or addiction to enable the carer to take a short break, holiday or rest. Respite may be provided in the community, within the person's own home, in HSE residential care settings, by agreement with voluntary organisations or by contracted private facilities. It may involve day or overnight respite. There has been a significant increase in funding for respite and disability services, increasing from €49.3 million in 2020 to €134.4 million in 2024. This allowed for 120,515 overnights and 48,099 day respite sessions to be accessed by 6,640 people with disabilities last year.

Since 2021, the home support emergency respite scheme has been in operation, providing emergency respite services either by placement of an in-home care worker or the temporary placement of the care recipient outside the home to deal with the emergency situation. Funding of €600,000 was allocated by the HSE to Family Carers Ireland in both 2023 and 2024 to deliver the scheme and to provide 27,000 hours of respite per year.

This a Government that supports and will continue to support carers' rights throughout the country. It recognises the challenges that carers, especially young carers, face day to day and it is ambitious in its commitment to ensure that they receive the necessary access to training and financial and well-being resources to ensure they can continue in their caring responsibilities. We will continue to listen to the voices that matter most, the carers themselves and their advocates. We will continue to do everything we can to ensure carers and young carers feel supported and empowered to provide their vital care and that they are recognised for their significant efforts.

I listened to the debate in my office and when I came to the Chamber. I fully appreciate the comments made, many of which were accurate, with many underlining the need to do more. I welcome Family Carers Ireland and the carers here today. Deputies Gibney, Stanley and Murphy referred to the means test and the need to abolish it. That is a commitment within the lifetime of this Government. There is a need and an urgency to do it as quickly as possible. That is the direction of travel of the Government. We are increasing income thresholds to allow more people to avail of carer's allowance.

Deputies Boyd Barrett and Stanley mentioned the impact this is having on young people, which is an important issue. These incredible young people are taking it upon themselves to care for older family members or siblings. They are extraordinary but, of course, this has an impact. Mental health and access to education were referenced. We need to take steps to address those issues. That is where the carer's guarantee comes in. It is a programme for Government commitment that carer's will be able to access counselling and education, supports that are vital to ensure carers have good outcomes and their well-being is looked after.

Many Deputies mentioned the need for increased respite. As a constituency TD, I understand the desperate needs of many carers, in particular for increased and expanded respite. Another programme for Government commitment is to expand emergency respite care. We will also focus on that.

The Minister, Deputy Foley, outlined that some young carers over the age of 16 can avail of some financial supports. I accept that some fall outside the criteria. There is a good reason we are supporting and not opposing the motion. There are many elements in it that we need to take on board. For this reason, I thank the Labour Party for tabling the motion. The need to do more for carers is often highlighted in the House by Opposition Deputies and Government backbenchers. It is good that we are focusing on young carers in particular because they do not get the focus they need sometimes. I welcome this opportunity to debate this issue.

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