The shortage of home care workers is causing considerable undue hardship for older people and their families. It especially affects older people who may have had major procedures in hospital and cannot be discharged because they may require two home care workers. Because they cannot be discharged, they have to spend longer than they should in hospital. There is a solution to this. The Government could extend visas to home care workers from outside the EU and include home care workers on the critical skills list thereby providing home care hours to those who badly need it.

The Minister of State, Deputy English, who is responsible for work permits and work visas, is examining that matter at the moment. It is a good idea on the face of it but not as straightforward as we might like it to be. Unlike, for example, nursing or other professions, it is not fully registered or regulated either abroad or here. When a nurse or a doctor comes from overseas, for example, from India or the Philippines, we know who they are and we know who regulates them here. That is not so straightforward with home care. That is the conundrum at the moment and we are working on it. We believe it is part of the solution. It would also help the sector to have an employment regulation order to set minimum terms and conditions and raise the standards of pay for people who work in the care sector. We will not solve the problem of recruitment through immigration alone.