Deputy Charlie McConalogue has demanded that the Government immediately reverse the deeply unfair cut to the Respite Care Grant introduced in the Budget.
The Donegal TD has revealed that 3,312 carers in Donegal will be directly affected by this callous cut.
Just under 200 of these do not get any other payment from the state, and Deputy McConalogue has said that this cut is ‘devastating’ for them.
Speaking after he attended a Carer’s Association protest outside the gates of Dáil Éireann today, Deputy McConalogue said “This is just the latest callous cut in what has been a sustained and targeted attack on people with disabilities, their families and their carers over the past year.
“Not only have Fine Gael and Labour been ignoring the outcry over savage cuts to home help hours and the sneaky reductions in disability services, they are now prepared to further attack the most vulnerable people and their carers..
“Have they no idea just how badly this is affecting thousands of people here Donegal and tens of thousands across the country? In the space of just 18 months, Fine Gael and Labour have returned to the disability sector again and again for deeply unfair cuts that have an enormous impact on the health and independence of people who desperately need support.”
The 20% cut means that 3,312 Donegal carers and 72,000 people across the country will be down €6.50 a week to €26.
Deputy McConalogue continued, “The Government’s only response is to say that the cut is ‘modest’. I have spoken to a number of carers in Donegal over the past number of months who are already under severe pressure and I know that for them, this cut is far from modest. It could be the difference between having the heating on or a warm meal.
“On top of everything else, this budgetary measure doesn’t even make any financial sense. The overall savings at €26 million are relatively small, while the continuing attack on supports for people with disabilities and their carers will push people onto the already overburdened hospital system.
He asked why the Government didn’t increase the Universal Social Charge for people earning over €100,000 a year, as Fianna Fáil proposed in our alternative budget?
“This would have saved €200 million a year – that’s 8 times the savings from the deeply discriminatory respite care cut.
“The Government must reverse this damaging cut immediately before it’s too late,” said Deputy McConalogue.