Liam Quaide (Cork East, Social Democrats)

I thank all my colleagues who supported our motion. The Minister, Deputy Calleary, emphasised in his response to the motion that he will not be opposing it and that there is "nothing between us", regarding the means test for carer's allowance. Yet, there is a major difference between abolishing the means test for carer's allowance in budget 2026 and abolishing it in budget 2030. Within that gulf between nice words and concrete actions are the experiences of carers who have had to leave their careers to look after a family member who requires full-time care and support and who are not even granted a modest payment to provide them with a modicum of financial security because their savings or their spouse’s income makes them ineligible. For carers locked out of this basic financial support, applying for carer's allowance and being rejected is a demeaning, gruelling process. The Government talks about being unable to abolish the means test in budget 2026 with a sense of inevitability, almost as if it is a law of nature that a proposal of this kind is fanciful or naive. Dragging out this decision over a five-year term is not inevitable; it is a political choice. The Government can ask banks that are highly profitable and that were bailed out by the State during the financial crash to pay more, or it can continue leaning on carers for their thankless, intruding into their finances and devaluing their contribution to society.

I want to share the words of a constituent who wrote to me about her experience. She captures very powerfully the core injustice of the means test for carer’s allowance.

I am a mum to an 8-year-old autistic girl who was diagnosed following a long drawn process and following a complaint having to be lodged to have the assessment of needs carried out for her.

In February 2023 due to lack of services and intervention as well as the demands of trying to navigate having a child with ASD and working full time I ended up suffering from parental burnout and have been out on sick leave due to my emotional and mental health being affected caring full time for my child. People don’t see the sleepless nights. I feel that carers should be recognised for what we do. Carers save the Government millions a year. I feel we are being exploited for our hard work. Carers who don't qualify for the carers allowance as they are over the means threshold are made to feel worthless as they aren't recognised for what we do and have the added stress of having to depend on our partners financially. We also then have the cost-of-living crisis on our hands with the expense of ESB, food, petrol, private therapies, various resource to help with regulating etc. I am lucky in one way as my husband has full time employment but due to his work, we are over the threshold for me to qualify for carers. I feel it is extremely unfair that my husband’s earnings have to be taken into account given that I am at home 24/7 with my daughter currently as we also do not have an appropriate school placement either. Having no financial independence or stability on top of lack of supports, no school placement as well as trying to navigate my child’s anxiety and other issues has become such a worry and has had a detrimental impact on my mental and emotional well-being. I would love to work part-time if not full time again at some stage but given the lack of supports, no school placement and my daughter’s heightened anxiety I am not in a position to and as a result I have to choose but to be a full-time carer, advocate, OT, SLT, teacher, psychologist etc. The Government needs to wake up and look after carers who are looking after their vulnerable citizens.

There is a choice to make in next week’s budget. Political decisions are not inevitable and the Government can continue treating carers as charity cases who are a burden on the State or, alternatively, as the essential backbone they are to our society and care system.

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