Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I want to raise several issues that relate to my village of Castleconnell. The first is the really good news yesterday that Nelson's Cross junction on the R525 will get a table top service. This has been the scene of many accidents over many years. I do not normally raise local issues but I am doing so because this came about as a result of a concerted campaign by locals. Hundreds of signatures were handed in to the Department of Transport. I was privileged to hand in those signatures last month. It shows the result of people power. I compliment all of the people in the village of Castleconnell who signed the petition and did not give up. They were told on countless occasions there would be no point trying to get the safety works completed. It just shows that local democracy can and does work. I compliment the people who kept fighting for this. We look forward to those safety measures being implemented. It has also been a good week in terms of sports funding for Castleconnell Boat Club, Lisnagry Football Club and Aisling Annacotty Football Club.

There has been one bit of bad news. This was the news that our local nursing home, Riverbrook, will have to close. This is significant in terms of jobs but more significant in terms of the excellent service that has been provided for many years. Can we imagine the trauma of residents having to be moved at a late age, which is unfortunately what may well face them if the collective consultancy process does not deliver a survival plan for the nursing home. This raises the fact we have a fundamental problem in the current model and how we support the elder care sector. It is very important we have a debate on this issue to speak about how it is funded. Clearly it is not funded enough at present. Riverbrook has the very best standards, and we must also debate how we ensure we have the best standards across the sector. This includes pay and conditions and a voice for workers. This is something we all have to face up to as a society. I urge the Acting Leader to consider a debate on elder care in the near future so we can all contribute to it.