David Norris (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I said I was dizzy. I beg the Senator's pardon. I thank her for correcting me. It was just a glitch, the rhetorical equivalent of a typo. As I know her well and respect her work, it was completely inadvertent.

It is important that we do this because so many times we are told a particular policy cannot be implemented because there is not a means test in the particular Department. I have been saying for many years that should be done in co-operation with the Revenue and the Department of Social Protection as then we would have the picture and we would not have to keep doing it. In this crisis, means testing may be unpleasant but it is necessary because we have to target the resources at the people who need them most.

I turn to the issue of carers. I have the a copy of the Carers Association budget proposal for 2013, which I am sure will be brought to the attention of the Minister, Deputy Burton. To my great delight I saw that it went to the heart of what I wanted to say on neutral proposals for building a brighter future for Ireland's family carers. I compliment the Government on the fact that it has launched, for the first time, a national carers strategy. I say "Well done" to the Government. This is the theory and the ideal we are aiming for, where for the first time we commit ourselves, as a people, to recognising the vital contribution carers make to society. We have never done that before.

As I went around the country last year visiting every single county I fell in love, all over again, with this country and the wonderful people who are unacknowledged and unrecognised. These people give of themselves so wholeheartedly and generously in circumstances where there is virtually no recognition, very little in the way of financial reward, and where conditions became increasingly harsh. As people retire they are not replaced, therefore the burden becomes greater.

The strategy pledges itself to recognise that carers are the backbone of the Irish health service and are key partners and supports to the health service. One can see that. That is not just waffle. Let us face the financial facts. Family carers provide ¤4 billion worth of care each year, five times what they cost the Department of Social Protection which gets ¤878 million. It is the same with the family support network. Its budget is ¤375,000 which is literally piddling. I hope that tiny amount of money which does so much good in the most deprived areas of the capital city will not be touched.

There is the question of the half rate. It is assumed that this may be a double payment but it is not. I quote from this side of the House the late Seamus Brennan. He was a Fianna Fáil Minister and a decent man, as everyone recognised. Like the present Minister he had the welfare of the people at heart. He said this was a direct support for caring duties.

There is also the household benefits package and the free travel pass. We were told yesterday of situations where, for example, disabled people were expected to go from a hospital in Galway to a hospital in Limerick without proper transport. The HSE provides either a bus or taxi but often the timetable does not suit the appointment. Therefore, they are of no use.