Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber to deal with this matter. My request is that we establish a commissioner for ageing and older people. The role would very much be about safeguarding the interests of older people, advising the Government on matters relating to older people, promoting awareness, encouraging best practice, reviewing the adequacy of existing laws, eliminating discrimination, and promoting participation by older people in a way that we are not currently doing enough in this area.

When we look at the way the population is changing, there are currently 768,900 people over 65 years of age. That is a substantial increase from where it was. The 2011 census indicated that, at that time, 11.7% of the population was over 65. In the more recent census, the figure was 15.1%. By 2030, more than 1 million people here will be over 65 years of age. As a result, we need to make sure we made adequate provision to protect them. This has very much come home in the past few weeks as regards the way, going back over the past 25 years, people in nursing homes were dealt with and why it ended up in challenges through the courts in order to establish particular rights. A commissioner for older people would be extremely helpful in dealing with many of the challenges now facing us. Such a position has been established in Wales since 2006 and in Northern Ireland since 2011.

We have made changes in other areas. We have an Ombudsman for Children, for example, but we have not put the same level of protection in place for older people. A number of reports have been produced over the past number of years internationally and in Ireland. We now need to progress this matter, especially in the context of the changes that have taken place.

I previously raised the issue of not having a legislative process in place in the context of home care. I published a Private Members' Bill in respect of this matter more than 18 months ago. We also need to progress that. A commissioner for ageing and older people would be extremely helpful in promoting and protecting that demographic as the overall population of this country changes. It is said that by 2035 there will be more than 1.1 million people over the age of 65. The number of people over 85 is also increasing dramatically. Now more than ever, there is a need to establish the role to which I refer.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I beg the Leas-Cheann Comhairle's indulgence in the context of allowing me to welcome a group of ladies to the House. They are members of the Fianna Fáil women's network, which includes many aspiring politicians. I hope the late hour we are sitting will not put them off deciding to venture into politics. They are more than welcome to Leinster House.

I very much thank the Deputy for raising this important matter and for giving me the opportunity to respond to the points raised. There is very little he said that I do not agree with. We are on the same page as regards this matter.

By 2041, one in five people in Ireland will be over 65 years of age. We have an ageing population, which is something to celebrate. We are all living longer, healthier lives. Older people have so much to contribute. We have the best life expectancy in Europe, at 82 years, notwithstanding the difficulties we have at times in accessing certain health supports. I always view older people as an opportunity; they are never a liability.

The Government is firmly committed to supporting healthy and positive ageing as well as ensuring measures will be put in place to meet both the challenges and opportunities associated with this shifting demographic. The programme for Government commits to the establishment of a commission on care that will "assess how we care for older people and examine alternatives to meet the diverse needs of our older citizens".

Last year preliminary desk research was undertaken within the Department of Health in preparation for the establishment of a commission on care. This year the commission will be further advanced as a priority. While the scope and the terms of reference of the commission have yet to be determined, it is envisaged that consideration of matters such as whether there is a need to establish an independent commissioner for ageing and older persons will fall within the commission's remit. Alternatively, I want serious consideration given to a possible ombudsman for older people, as Deputy Burke suggested. He also mentioned safeguarding, best practice, elimination of discrimination - all things on which we all agree.

The commission on care will be built on strong foundations. Over the past two decades there has been significant investment in establishing robust policies and strategies on positive ageing across Departments. We know that positive ageing requires a whole-of-government approach to address the range of social, economic and environmental factors that affect the lives of ageing citizens.

My Department has taken steps to ensure policies and strategies translate into meaningful outcomes, and strong partnerships have been forged with local authorities and organisation such as Age Friendly Ireland. Those partnerships have facilitated regular engagement with our diverse older citizens which allows us to hear their lived experience. Over the past ten years, 20,000 older people have participated in consultations throughout Ireland through town hall meetings, older persons' councils, round-table discussions, focus groups and workshops. I commend specifically the older persons' councils, which do fabulous work. This engagement has been invaluable as it has ensured awareness of the diverse and evolving needs of older people in communities throughout Ireland, whether urban or rural, younger or older, diverse ethnic groups, members of the Traveller community, older people with disabilities, LGBTI+ older people or other minorities.

I am fully committed to ensuring there is adequate and appropriate policy, legislation and services in place to support the diverse older cohort in Ireland. Being two and a half years into my role as Minister of State with responsibility for older people, Deputy Burke might ask why I have not worked on this earlier. As he himself will know, however, through all the various conversations we have had and the challenges we have had with older people, the nursing home sector and daycare centres, that is where the focus is. My focus, however, has very much turned to this now and this particular cohort, and I look forward to progressing this as a matter of priority.

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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If the office were established, my understanding is that the cost would be around €2 million. That €2 million would be a very good investment in dealing with this area.

I go back to 2004, when I wore a different cap and I acted in a legal capacity for many elderly people in nursing homes. As a result of that challenge in 2004, we brought about a sea change over the following three or four years in how we dealt with people who were having to go into nursing homes for care. We set up the fair deal scheme, which is a very good scheme. Likewise, we need now to make sure we have a very comprehensive package in respect of home care.

The other challenge we have is that as people get older there are an increasing number with dementia. I think there are more than 64,000 people with dementia in Ireland now. The figure may be higher, but that is the figure I have established. They are people who need particular protection and support.

There are two other sea changes in Ireland. One is the fact that families are smaller now and, therefore, there is not the same level of support that was there, say, 25 or 30 years ago. The second, which will be a challenge not so much in the next ten years but certainly in the next 20 years is people who were not born here in Ireland but who have moved here and do not have any immediate family support. As they get older they will need protection and the necessary level of support needs to be put in place. Therefore, we should have a commissioner identifying all these issues and working with a Minister, such as the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, to make sure the challenges people who are retired face can be adequately looked after. It would be a huge achievement for the Minister of State to deliver on this while she holds her role. I thank her again for all the work she is doing in this area.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for the support he has always afforded to me. We all have a common desire to have the best possible policies and services in place for older people. That process starts by ensuring we identify the growing and diverse needs of older people. I want to see older people being able to age in place and being able to live in their own communities for as long as possible.

We do that by supplying three different types of supports. The first support is daycare services and dementia daycare services. The second is home care. My budget this year to provide home care supports for older people is €700 million. The third is meals on wheels. I actually had a meeting about that today and I am delighted to say that I secured an extra €1.75 million in this year's budget to support the numerous people who deliver meals on wheels. Meals on wheels is so much more than a nutritious meal being dropped at your door. It is that knock on the door and that social contact you might not normally have, especially for people living in rural isolation. Some 400,000 meals are delivered monthly.

Also, 56,000 people receive home care every single day, notwithstanding the fact we have a waiting list of 3,200 people. That is funded, but we cannot put all the staff in place. Thankfully, however, since 1 January of this year, 1,000 permits for those from outside the EU have been put in place. I am very hopeful that by February or March we might see a result on that. There are currently 2,640 permits being used for healthcare workers who came in from other countries to work in nursing homes, so I am positive from that perspective that it will yield a return.

I hope to have the commission on care established by the middle of this year. I will engage with all the stakeholders and, of course, the Deputy himself.