Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister has alluded to technical difficulties but it is very unfair to leave parents, children and families in a position where they are unclear as to the civil patronage of their children and the way they will be treated by the State, especially in accident and emergency-type situations, which can be very upsetting.

The third issue I want to raise is the backlog of cases at the Office of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman. There is a very large number of outstanding complaints yet to be dealt with by that office, which is a last port of call for consumers who are having difficulties getting anywhere with various financial institutions. There has been an increase of 40% in those numbers from the beginning of 2018 to the end of October. Many issues regarding unresolved tracker mortgage cases arose last year and have arisen again this year. The Office of the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman needs to be better resourced in order to ensure consumers are not waiting in limbo for their complaint about financial concerns or irregularities to be determined.