As of yesterday, 320 people were waiting for home support hours in the constituency of Cavan-Monaghan. The real frustration for families is that they are receiving letters from the HSE telling them that they have been allocated hours and are entitled to them. However, they continue for months without the hours being made available. They are left high and dry and given a false promise. Like many others in this House, constituents of mine have literally been waiting for months for home help hours to be made available. Does the Taoiseach really see the additional home help hours provided for making a real difference for the 320 people waiting in the constituency of Cavan-Monaghan?

On page 86 of the programme for Government the Government promised that it would introduce a uniform homecare service in order that all recipients could receive quality support seven days a week, where possible. The reality is completely different. For example, one constituent of mine who suffers from a lifelong condition and is wheelchair bound was hospitalised earlier this year with kidney and lung problems. He was ready to be discharged over a month ago, but he cannot leave the acute hospital owing to a lack of home help hours and now risks picking up hospital acquired infections, while his acute hospital bed is badly needed for other patients. Another constituent suffers from motor neurone disease and urgently needs additional home help hours, but he cannot get them. In the budget the Government promised an extra 1 million home help hours, but the experts reliably inform us that there is a need for over 4 million extra hours to clear the backlog. Will the Government take urgent steps to clear it?

Is the Minister for Health aware that the last time a new home help package was approved in County Offaly was last June? Does he know these facts and is he aware that the provision he supposedly made for an allocation to allow services to stand still will not enable it to stand still? That is an abdication of responsibility on the part of those charged with it. It is an absolute disgrace that the Minister is presiding over a situation where I can be told that not one home help package was made available in the county for the past six months. Is he proud of this?

No, but when Deputy Cowen was engaging on and agreeing to the budgetary figures for the past number of budgets, I am sure he made sure there was enough of an allocation made available for homecare services because I thought in the whole confidence and supply thing he came and saw the Minister for Finance, Deputy Donohoe, and agreed to the levels of funding to be allocated for homecare services.

I am asking the Minister if is he aware of-----

I thank the Deputy for the sanctimonious-----

I am not being sanctimonious.

I thank the Deputy for the sanctimonious faux outrage from a tetchy Fianna Fáil Party.

It is not faux outrage; far from it.

In response to a very legitimate question, I thank the Deputy for helping to negotiate the budget in which extra resources have been provided for homecare services.

I think the Minister is very touchy today.

The Minister has presided over the shambles that is the health service.

I am not sure which Fianna Fáil Member said that.

The Minister will not cave in, but he has been the worst Minister for Health ever.

Which of them said that?

They are all very giddy today.

They are cranky.

Without exception, he is the worst Minister for Health ever. Let us take the budgets announced over the years. Talk about fooling people, the Minister is fooling them on a constant basis.

I will not take any lecture from the Deputy. He should not start pointing the gun at me again.

Deputy Smyth raised an important question and the Deputies might afford her the opportunity of receiving an answer to it. She is right. I consider Cavan-Monaghan has received an inappropriate distribution of homecare hours in recent years. Yes, the extra €26 million that will be spent as part of the winter plan between now and the end of the year will allow the provision of additional homecare packages, from which Cavan-Monaghan will benefit. Most importantly, the agreement we reached collectively on the provision of additional homecare services in 2020 will see the allocation of 1 million additional home help hours. This means that in 2020 we will for the first time in quite a few years see a reduction in the homecare waiting list. Of course, we know that the real answer is the putting in place of a statutory homecare scheme, to answer Deputy Michael Collins's question. We will proceed with a pilot scheme next year.

Is the Minister aware that in the mid-west region there is a three-year waiting list for aids and appliances? I have been talking to people who received sanction for aids or appliances up to three years ago and when I contact the HSE, I am consistently told that money has not been provided and that the list is growing. Can the Minister provide reassurance in that regard? When will money be released to accommodate those who have received sanction?

In respect of the €26 million in one-off funding to be made available between now and the end of the year, provision is made for additional funding for aids and appliances. As for how much of the allocation will go to the mid-west region, that is a matter for the HSE, but I will reply directly to the Deputy on it.