Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I would like to assure the Deputy that the Government is committed to supporting positive ageing across the life course as well as to ensuring that older people can continue to live independently in their homes and communities for as long as possible. This commitment is enshrined in the National Positive Ageing Strategy, which provides a blueprint for promoting older people’s engagement in economic, social, cultural and community life and for fostering inter-generational solidarity. Recognising the need for a whole-of-society approach to supporting positive ageing, the Strategy’s implementation is a whole-of-government endeavour. This has been advanced through a wide range of initiatives developed and delivered in partnership with the community and voluntary sector.

My Department’s Healthy and Positive Ageing Initiative (HaPAI) was initiated in 2015 to support the monitoring of the Strategy ’s implementation through the collation and analysis of indicators on older persons’ health and wellbeing. In addition, three annual stakeholder fora were held in 2017, 2018 and 2019 to support engagement in the areas of participation, health, and security (2017); living well in the community, health education and literacy, and older people and transport (2018); and older people and transport; living well in the community; and HaPAI (2019) respectively.

We recognise that there remain significant challenges, which the COVID-19 pandemic has set in relief and which will be exacerbated as our population ages. It is within this context that, on 3 October 2023, the Government approved the proposal, which the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, and I brought forward, for the establishment of an independent Commission on Care for Older People. €1.243 million was allocated in Budget 2024 to support the Commission’s work.

The Commission will examine the provision of health and social care services and supports for older people and make recommendations to the Government for their strategic development. Subsequently a Cross-Departmental Group will be established under the auspices of the Commission to consider whether the supports for positive ageing across the life course are fit-for-purpose and to develop a costed implementation plan for options to optimise these supports.

On 14 December 2023 the Minister for Health and I announced the appointment of Professor Alan Barrett (Chief Executive Officer, Economic and Social Research Institute) as the Chairman of the Commission. On 29 February 2024 we announced the appointment of the other members of the Commission, all of whom are also independent experts.