Maria Byrne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy O'Sullivan, for coming to the House to discuss this all-important matter. In recent weeks I have heard from a lot of older people who had heard of others of their own age applying for, and availing of, a boiler grant through the housing adaptation grants for older people and disabled people. Boilers have been removed from these grants and it is causing a lot of stress for older people, especially because boilers are quite costly. They can cost anything from €3,000 to €8,000. The main issue is that while the Government is trying to encourage everyone towards installing heat pumps and renovating their homes, many people of a certain age will never carry out some of these works or would find it prohibitive to carry them out. It is quite costly to change a heating system and install a heat pump. While people buying new houses understand it, people who have been living in the same house for the past 40 or 50 years or more do not understand it. This needs to be reversed and boilers need to be included in the scheme because there is so much stress and strain. I have heard of ten cases in the past four weeks with regard to the same issue. It is quite a high percentage in such a short time. I look forward to hearing the response of the Minister of State.