Seán Kyne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is welcome and I join others in acknowledging her advocacy and work in the area of disability services. She is a strong advocate and a personal support to all of those families and communities. I first acknowledge, as I did on the Order of Business this morning, the double payments for carers this week and for persons with a disability. That is an acknowledgement of the work and support of Government, and an acknowledgement of the difficulties with the cost of living many people face in this country. Like many people I was, at a time, a carer for my late father. I am proud and privileged to be part of a team, which included six brothers and sisters, my mother and in-laws. We were lucky. We were a large family. We were able to do that. However, I am conscious of somebody who does not have children, and who probably will not at this stage. What is down the line for them when they get older and will there be somebody there to look after them? I also acknowledge that there are full-time carers like Senator Clonan whose life's work is looking after their loved one, and they do it without complaint while rightly fighting for improved services.

This is something that has impacted, is impacting, or will probably impact every family. You could have a large family, but it is spread through different parts of the country or the world. We were lucky enough that there were six of us in the general area. There was one in London, and they would come back and forth. There are other families scattered to the four corners of the country and the world or that have differences. There are also only children. There are people who burn out looking after and trying to provide for loved ones. In the recessions we had, you could argue that the issue was funding the organisations to provide the services. You could then argue during boom times that the problem is not so much funding, but getting people to do the necessary jobs. A more consistent approach and delivery would obviously be preferable. That concerns pay rates and everything else, as Senator Byrne has said.

I know the Department of housing is tasked with the capital expenditure for respite houses. Is that the best model? Is it a problem?