Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 223: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the plans in place to ensure that the additional €1.1 million she announced in December 2007 towards progressing the care costs in sheltered housing will be delivered on in 2008; the way she will ensure that proper and transparent criteria, including prioritisation for voluntary housing associations seeking such funding, are applied in a consistent manner throughout the country; if she will clarify whether this €1.1 million is additional to the previous funding stream of less than €1.5 million that was in place in 2007; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4750/08]

Máire Hoctor (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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The Government's policy on older people is to support people to live in dignity and independence in their own homes and communities for as long as possible and, where this is not possible, to support access to quality long-term residential care. This policy approach is renewed and developed in the latest partnership agreement, Towards 2016. The focus in Budget 2008 was to ensure continued improvements in the key area of community and home-based services. In this regard, an additional package of €22 million has been allocated for community initiatives, including an additional €1.1 million to progress the development of sheltered housing for older people. This is in addition to the €500,000 announced in Budget 2007.

The Deputy may be aware that earlier this year the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government established a Cross Departmental Team on Sheltered Housing, involving the Department of Health and Children, the HSE, the Office for Social Inclusion and local authorities. The Cross Departmental Team will, in conjunction with the Office of the Minister for Older People, develop and oversee policy on sheltered housing provision for older people and agree protocols for integrated management and delivery of housing and related care services. The establishment of the team forms part of an overall strategic response to the housing needs of older people, as outlined in the Government's Housing Policy Statement, Delivering Homes, Sustaining Communities, which was published earlier this year.

Operational responsibility for the management and delivery of health and personal social services was assigned to the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Funding for health services has been provided as part of the Executive's overall vote for health and personal social services in 2008. The allocation of resources is a matter for the Executive in accordance with the overall priorities for particular services as set out in its Service Plan. Therefore, the Executive is the appropriate body to consider the particular matter raised by the Deputy. The Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.