Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)

I take a little bit of umbrage of what the Minister of State, Deputy Murnane O'Connor, said. Perhaps it was just a slip of the tongue when she mentioned the number of people who have spoken on the motion. The majority of those who have spoken on it are from the Opposition benches. Only two from the Government benches turned up for this debate, with the exception of the Minister of State, Deputy Murnane O'Connor, and the other Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell. That just shows what the Government thinks of this debate.

It is all very well to say the Government will not oppose the motion, but in one part of the reply it states that the Department is providing funding of €250,000 to conduct a survey on mid-life and older women and their health and well-being. Did the Minister of State ever think about going out and asking a carer what their life is like? Did she ever think about sitting down and having a cup of tea with somebody who is looking after a husband or a wife – who is washing them, feeding them and changing adult diapers? That is the reality of life. We do not need to spend a quarter of a million euro on a survey to work out what difficulties a carer has. It is all very well to say the Government is not going to oppose this motion and that it will let it go through.

We had two speakers from the Lowry Independent group, who came on our side and supported us. Why were carers not put to the fore when they were negotiating the terms of the programme for Government? Some of them were too busy trying to get into positions of power rather than negotiating for carers. Another Member mentioned the VAT rate. He failed to recognise that the cost of everything has gone up. Costs in the food industry have gone up by 40% so the Government's income from VAT is way up.

I thank the Minister of State for the fact that the motion is not opposed. While I welcome it, we must get things done correctly. The Government is spending a quarter of a million euro on a survey. While it is not costed, the Minister of State's reply also refers to another survey on healthcare assistants. That will probably cost another quarter of a million. That is money that we could be spending on the front line.

What do I say when I go back to the person in Mallow who sat in my office and said she was caring for her father and because of her husband's salary, she is getting a couple of euro a week from the Government to care for him? It costs her €80 a week to drive from Mallow to Blarney Street.

What do I say to the person in Blackrock who is changing her father's diapers and is entitled to nothing due to her husband's salary? As my colleague, Deputy Fitzmaurice, said, what do we say to the person who has had to give up their home and move into the family home, and is entitled to nothing? I can say they should not worry about it because the Government – Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Lowry Independent group - have decided to commission a survey that is going to cost a quarter of a million. What benefit is it to such a person? We already know the answers to the questions. The Minister of State should go into the AV meeting room and meet the carers groups. We must care for the carers. I will leave it at that.

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