On Wednesday night the Technical group made a concerted effort in the Dáil to push back on some of the government cuts targeted at the disabled and their carers. We proposed that the government recognises the contribution carers make to Irish society, and provide them with adequate income supports. There are 180,000 carers in Ireland. In Wicklow alone there are 5,131 full time carers.
Rather than covering old ground regarding the current backlog of carers allowance applications by early 2013, and providing Free GP care to full time Family Carers, I wanted to illustrate how the cuts to the respite care grant are poorly thought out, will cause pain and hardship for carers and those they care for, and ultimately may not save the state any money.
