Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to this debate. We are all quite rightly sickened with the recent "Prime Time" exposé about how certain nursing homes treated residents, the impact that has had on the families of the affected residents and also the impact that has on families who have people in nursing homes. My family has just gone through an agonising number of months, deciding whether nursing home care was the right care for my father. We arrived at that decision a number of weeks ago.

It is important that all families realise that this is not a universal problem, because there is serious worry. It is equally important that families know that when elder abuse happens and there are failings in nursing homes, there has to be accountability and there have to be consequences for the firms and individuals who perpetrated abuse in these nursing homes. There needs to be accountability for the firms which are receiving €1.2 billion in State funds per annum to support the provision of care.

In the next decade, we will see the number of people over 65 increase by 50%. I agree with the previous speaker that the State needs to move away from the privatisation of care and care homes. My experience tells me that the vast majority of people do not want to live out the end of their days in care homes. They would rather remain in their home for as long as practically possible. Funding for public services in this area has increased in the last number of years, with additional home care hours and additional daycare centres, and people have seen the benefit, but much more needs to be done. We need to remove the 16-week waiting list to be assessed for home care services. We need to ensure that people who are approved for home care hours get them seven days a week, not five days a week. If you need care on a Monday, you are going to need it on a bank holiday Monday, a Saturday or a Sunday. We need to ensure that the daycare centres are expanded regardless of their geographical location.

The previous programme for Government committed to a statutory home care package. Why is there a delay? Can the Minister of State commit to that package being introduced as a priority by this Government? HIQA was established as a response to a previous exposé of elder abuse. Why was it not established on day one with adequate powers to fine private operators which are failing abysmally in their responsibility to their residents? Can we ensure that, out of this, we will see adequate powers in place for HIQA and that HIQA will concentrate on the provision of care, not the quality of building?

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