Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation
Dail Éireann — 2026-07-09
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Seamus Healy (IND), Tipperary South

Across Ireland, 624,000 people provide regular unpaid care to children and adults with additional needs. A recent 2026 report on care shows that 75% of carers never received respite, 49% cut back on essentials such as food and heating, and 48% experienced severe loneliness. Of course, these carers saved the State millions of euro annually. I have a specific question arising from a family in my constituency. This family's severely disabled teenaged son passed away last year after a long and traumatic illness. The dad had to give up work but is now in a position to return to work. He is being penalised by way of a reduction of his working family payment because his wife's carer's allowance for another family member is assessed against him. This is deeply unfair and I would ask that the Minister ensure the carer's allowance payment is disregarded for purposes of assessment of the working family payment.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-07-09/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:07+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-09