Applicants for adaptation grants for homes of people with a disability or a disability acquired as a result of an accident or progressive condition are waiting five or six months for Cavan County Council to even acknowledge the application. They are not even assessed at that stage for priority. There is then limited availability of funding, so only a small number of grants are dealt with. People are being forced to remain in hospital, go into a nursing home, sleep on the sofa or put their bed and often a commode in the living room. That reduces their dignity and impacts the whole family. Can additional funding be made available for this important grant? Can the amount of the grant also be increased to reflect the increase in construction costs?

I thank the Deputy for her question. If there is a specific issue with Cavan County Council in terms of an applicant, we can follow up the particular case. We have encouraged local authorities to submit applications for supplementary funding this year. We have received 13 applications, of which we have approved ten, so we have another three. If Cavan County Council has applied for additional funding or wishes to do so, we can follow up on that.

The Department, under Housing for All, has carried out a review of three grants, namely, the housing adaptation grants for the elderly, the mobility aids grant and the disabled person's grant. I have reviewed the review and we have made a submission to the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform looking across those areas in terms of enhanced grants. The submission is currently with that Department. If the Deputy has a specific query on a particular case, she should bring it to my attention and we can follow up with Cavan County Council.