Mark Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I thank the Minister of State very much for his reply.

We are all aware of the importance of the seniors alert scheme. It has been a life-saving scheme for many people, not just in rural communities but also in urban areas. I am glad to hear that so many people have taken it up since it was launched in 2015, and that the Department is launching a new scheme in 2026.

In launching the new scheme in 2026, has the Department looked at those technologies we were asking about? The Minister of State mentioned weather alerts and so on. Unfortunately, much of that is dependent on electricity, and there have been outages. For older people in particular, when there is an outage and the electricity is gone, they have no contact with the outside world. That is where modern technologies need to play their part.

An important aspect of the scheme is the house alarm, which would give people security. The pendant is great, but it is about deterring those who might want to enter a house for illegal activity. A house alarm would benefit many people, particularly in rural areas.

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