Emer Currie (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and I thank the Minister for her response to the motion. It has been very useful. She covered a lot of the issues or questions that have been asked. She is giving us food for thought. I also want to thank the Labour Party for tabling this motion. It is an excellent motion and there is also some overlap with some of the work we have been doing with the women's caucus on the care economy. We were hoping to have an all-party motion on that. There is a lot of overlap with this.

The Minister mentioned that she automatically thinks of the women who have given up work to look after a disabled child. Where do we primarily meet those women? We meet them on the doorstep when we are canvassing. The reality is that this is probably one of the most important topics that we talk about and that we are focused on today. Yet, a lot of these people feel invisible and are incredibly lonely. However, when I meet with carers, I am so impressed by what they give to their families and society. I often feel they could rule the world themselves with the proposals and the suggestions they make. I am glad they are getting a focus today.

What do they raise?They raise very practical issues. The Minister has reflected on some of them in her response. The domiciliary care allowance application form is a 20-page document. I have raised the issue with the Minister before. It might be the first time a parent or carer has sat down and gone through just how difficult it is to make ends meet and how challenging it can be to make sure that everyone's needs are taken care of. It can be traumatic for people. Looking at the figures on appeals, I ask the Minister to look at the process and see if there is anything that can be done to make it easier on families. For example, perhaps a threshold could be introduced at which applicants will be provided with the allowance. The feedback that I get is that it is traumatic to fill out the 20-page application. People might need assistance from their wider network of friends and supports to know how to answer the questions.

In relation to the carer's allowance, I wish I had spoken before the Minister. It would be a lot easier without having to take on board everything that she said. The allowance is out of date. We are living in a completely different time, 33 years later. The restrictions on the 18.5 hours of work or education is coming up as a barrier for people. How do we ensure that we are providing access pathways to carers for education and work? We are short of therapists, including speech and language therapists and occupational therapists. Perhaps we can look at providing pathways into courses for the carers - who are women, primarily - who have given up their careers to look after their children and are working with them on a daily basis. I know the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has looked at ways of changing pathways into education in general. I am aware that it is going to be very difficult to look at the overall budget and what can be done for carers, but at the same time, it may be part of a trajectory. Family Carers Ireland has called for a trajectory that we can follow. The idea of a participation income is a very good one but I do not want to see the responsibility removed from the Department of Social Protection. I think there is a big degree of trust between carers and that Department, and the work that she has done. There would be a reluctance for the responsibility to change but at the same time I hear what is being said about the contribution that the Department of Health should be making to this. It should not just all be the responsibility of the Department of Social Protection. If the Department of Health needs to stand up and contribute to this, it should. As I said, from speaking to carers I know how much they trust the Minister's Department. Government spending on social protection schemes and public services has increased from €8.8 billion in 2019 to over €10.6 billion in 2023. That is an increase of 21%, which is highly significant. I am very grateful for all the updates the Minister has given us in relation to pensions and the referendum.

I also want to mention the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023. Hopefully, that legislation will help people who want to stay in work but need more flexibility as well. I thank the Minister for the work she has done. It was good to hear a summary of all of that work. I ask her to remember the people we meet on the doorsteps, and look at what we can do to support them.