Mary White (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State and congratulate her on her excellent and wide-ranging speech. I compliment her on the seriousness with which she has taken her ministerial role with responsibility for older people. At the time of the 2006 census, approximately 500,000 people living in Ireland, or 11 % of the total population, were over the age of 65. The number of older people is expected to double in the next 20 years.

The growth in the older population is a cause for celebration as our life expectancy continues to increase. The majority of older people live full and active lives, enjoying good health and independence. However, it is a fact that a number of older people suffer abuse of one form or another. The likelihood of abuse appears to increase as people get older. International research indicates that anywhere between 3% and 5% of older people may be subject to abuse. This would suggest that between 14,000 and 23,000 older people suffer abuse in Ireland. The numbers referred to the HSE are significantly less than that, which indicates we have a hidden problem with elder abuse in this country. That is in keeping with international literature which documents reporting rates as low as 1% to 2%.

Under-reporting is likely to be due to a number factors. Many older people may be reluctant to report abuse, especially because elder abuse, by definition, occurs within a relationship in which there is an expectation of trust. People may be too ashamed or embarrassed to say they are being abused. They feel there is something wrong with them or that they must be inferior if somebody is abusing them. If an older person is being abused by a close family member, the older person may not wish to upset the family relationship. Similarly, if the abuse is perpetrated by a carer, the older person may be afraid to report the carer who is abusing him or her.

Sometimes, either the abused or the abuser may not recognise the actions as abuse. This may be especially true in cases of financial or psychological abuse which can be more insidious and less easily recognised than other forms of abuse. According to Ms Mary Nally who runs the senior helpline in Summerhill, County Meath, one of the commonest forms of abuse is financial. Older people are terrified and they are frequently financially abused by relations. There are several forms of abuse which have been outlined by the Minister of State. They include physical, sexual, psychological, financial, material and discriminatory abuse, including ageism, sexism and abuse based on a person's disability and other forms of harassment or slurs.

Some Members may be aware that I have embarked on a campaign with The Irish Times to address ageism in this country. Commencing in June, we will make inspirational living awards to older people, private and public organisations, those who have provided examples as role models, and to companies that promote older people and deal with their human rights. We will have quarterly awards in three different categories.

My mission is to address the human rights of older people. One is an asset to the State until one is 60 or 65 and then one becomes a liability. That is the way the legislation is framed. I made a valiant effort to ensure people aged 65 should not have to retire, that they should have a choice. I got that included in the programme for Government of June 2007. That has not been delivered yet but we will get to it.

Most Members are familiar with my policy document from June 2006, A New Approach to Ageing & Ageism. Recommendation 26 states: "The recommendations of the Working Group Report on Elder Abuse should be implemented immediately, and dedicated social workers should be provided to identify and prevent cases of elder abuse." I am very pleased that subsequent to the document's publication a national elder abuse steering committee was established in October 2007 to oversee and develop a national and consistent approach towards the provision of elder abuse services by the HSE. I am very impressed with what has been achieved. While I accept there is a significant job to be done, good progress has been made by the HSE in the development of its approach to elder abuse. There is no doubt about that and we must give recognition to the HSE where it is due. Mr. Frank Murphy, who is the dedicated officer in charge of dealing with elder abuse, is based in Roscommon. Since my document was produced dedicated officers and social workers are in place to deal with elder abuse. I addressed those areas passionately in my document.

I outlined in my document that elder abuse is a serious issue in Ireland that has not received the same priority as in other countries. There is no doubt that the events that came to light in Leas Cross opened up a Pandora's box. Like childhood abuse we did not believe that people were so callous and ruthless in how they treated children and older people.

When I wrote the document in 2006 the only freefone elder abuse helpline was run from the United Kingdom and that is still the case. The main freefone helpline, 1800 940010, is manned from the UK. There was such a demand for the UK-based helpline that a special line was developed for this country. That is run by volunteers from the UK. Many Members will be aware of the senior helpline in Summerhill, County Meath. This is a unique example of what local people coming together as a community can achieve. That senior helpline has now been rolled out throughout the country and will also be rolled out in Boston. It is driven by Ms Mary Nally. Those who man the senior helpline are older people themselves and they have great empathy. I spoke to one of them today to bring myself up to date with what they hear. I asked how one knows the person ringing is being abused. The lady said to me that one must let the caller talk and talk. Ms Mary Nally told me the people who run the helpline receive tremendous training on how to identify abuse.

There is no doubt that we have made progress but we have a lot more to do. The bottom line is that we must have greater awareness such that people will watch out for one another, ascertain whether they know someone who is being abused and report it where it occurs.