These are very serious issues, reflective perhaps of the current financial situation and the priorities of the Government collectively in terms of where funding is going and where cutbacks are being made. We recently had a debate in this House on the carer's allowance, and I believe the Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Deputy Coughlan, was in the House that evening. The figures and statistics were there for all to see. There are over 200,000 carers in this country, and if the Government is seriously committed to services for elderly people, this is a fundamental area which must be looked at. My own party and other political parties have campaigned for the abolition of the means test for the carer's allowance. If it were abolished, potential carers would take up the role and help those who need their services. Some organs of the health service are being propped up by carers, and in order to maintain the numbers of those taking on the job, a root-and-branch reform of the scheme is essential. Innovative measures should be taken by the Government to ensure that older people have carers as they get on in years.