Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions
Dail Éireann — 2026-02-05
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Cian O'Callaghan (SD), Dublin Bay North

"Who will care for our daughter when we are no longer able to do so? Nobody is able to answer that question." These are the words of Tony Murray, a 71-year-old man from Dublin who is at his wits' end looking for answers. Tony and his wife Susan are full-time carers for their 42-year-old daughter, Aoife, who has an intellectual disability. They are just one of the thousands of families where elderly parents are working as full-time carers well into their 70s, 80s and even 90s. Adults with intellectual disabilities deserve to live with dignity, security and independence but, as Tony said on Newstalk yesterday, there is no plan to even have a plan for housing adults with intellectual disabilities. There is no thought-out system in place in the devastating circumstance of parents passing away. Instead, what takes place is a haphazard series of events that can be incredibly traumatic for the person who is taken into care.
Tony described how he feels the State is waiting for him to die. Only then might there be an emergency placement for his daughter. Aoife will be taken from her home and brought to a not-for-profit care home that could be anywhere in the country. Over a period of a few weeks, Aoife will have lost her parent, her primary carer, her home, her friends and any semblance of the life she once knew. This is why Tony has started the campaign Before We Die to fight for appropriate housing for adults with intellectual disabilities. It is shocking that such a group needs to exist in a country with the resources at the Government's disposal. These families have already spent their life battling at every corner for therapies, school places and respite services. Nothing is straightforward and everything must be fought for. Now, the very act of planning for a future when they will not be around is met with a brick wall put up by the State. There is no plan and no system. Their cherished son or daughter will have their life upended.
Why are parents in their 70s, 80s and even 90s being left to worry about what happens to their loved ones when they die? Why is there no plan? Why is there no transition to appropriate accommodation for adults with intellectual disabilities?

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-02-05/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:36+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-02-05