Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)

I wish to make a brief observation. Many defective applications are being made to the Department, through no fault of the applicants. They just do not know the criteria the Minister has set out and the complications of the system. The Minister indicated that it is not a medical test for the domiciliary care allowance in full, it is a functional one. That is a problem across Departments. Most people that have come to my office who have been refused the allowance have defective applications. There is no way they would have got approval even though they deserve it because of what is contained in the form. I do not know that can be done about that because it is a resource issue. Education for Members initially on the various benefits and the criteria for them would be a help.