Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. I travel to Monaghan a lot too, as the Minister knows, in case she picks me up on something.

I know the Deputy does. It is a good county. I welcome any people who come to it. We could do with more tourists.

Family Carers Ireland acknowledges budget 2025 brings some welcome measures to alleviate the pressure carers feel every day, such as increasing the respite grant to €2,000 per annum and increasing the disregard to €1,250, which allows more carers to get it. The Minister knows well and I am not saying she does not know, but why did she not do what she said she would do or what carers want?

Carers are the unsung heroes of our society yet budget 2025 leaves them in the shadows. One in eight people in Ireland provides unpaid care, saving the State billions, but where is their support? Waiting until July 2025 is a slap in the face for them. The increases are given, but they have to wait for ten months after the budget. Will the Minister show the compassion she needs to show? Carers welcome it but why do they have to wait until next July to get it?

It is time to fully abolish the carer's allowance means test, and we all know that. That is what they expected. I welcome the carers here today and compliment all family carers and especially our councillor, Richie Molloy, in South Tipperary, who is manager of south Tipperary carers, on the work he and his organisation do.

Carers make an enormous contribution. Over 500,000 individuals are family carers, meaning one in eight people provides regular unpaid care. Family carers are the backbone of care provision, yet they often feel they are not getting recognition. They are definitely not getting it. Caring intensively over long periods without support or recognition negatively affects carers' physical and mental health, financial status and social integration. Many carers, especially those caring for children with additional needs, face long-term implications for their health, well-being and financial security. Many children who should be in school, amach faoin spéir or playing matches are caring for loved ones. That is a crying shame.

Carers are predominantly women, with those in their 50s most likely to be providing care. Some 57% of carers, as per census 2022, juggle work with caring responsibilities. That is not easy, as the Minister knows. The number of carers increased by over 50% between 2016 and 2022 and is expected to continue rising due to an ageing population and more people with life-limiting conditions.

The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, who is sitting beside the Minister, closed a lovely hospital in Carrick-on-Suir. Respite beds are not available. The Minister of State can whisper what she likes but she took away the respite and palliative care beds provided by the community.

Deputy Murphy spoke of the economic value of carers. Family Carers Ireland, a national charity, estimates €10 billion per year is the value of what carers do. That is an enormous sum.

Thank you, time is up. Minister, please.

I know the Deputy is very familiar with Monaghan because he was lucky enough to get his wife there. She is a great woman from a great family.

She sure is.

There is a lot of interest in my county but there is nobody who knows more about Monaghan than I do - that is it as far as I am concerned. I was born and reared there and have lived there all my life. We will move on.

I believe it was after a HIQA inspection that St. Brigid's Hospital was closed but it is now being-----

Not true.

-----repurposed and will be reopened with 28 people working there.

It is not a hospital anymore.

Please let the Minister answer.

I will move on to the question the Deputy asked. I know the important role family carers play and am fully committed to supporting them in that role. I meet them regularly in my Department, including at the annual carers forum. I have heard first-hand over many years of the wonderful work they do under extremely difficult circumstances; probably the most difficult is where mothers have children with disabilities. It is not easy and we all acknowledge the work they do.

At the end of August, there were 97,407 recipients of carer's allowance with recipient numbers increasing every year. The estimated cost of the scheme this year is expected to be over €1.1 billion. However, I acknowledge that no amount of money could reflect the value of care given to children or family members with profound care needs.

I was the first Minister to increase the carer's disregard in 14 years. Since my appointment as Minister for Social Protection, I have nearly doubled the income disregard for carer's allowance from €332.50 to €625 for a single carer and from €665 to €1,250 for a carer who is part of a couple. At the request of carers and their representative organisations, I also increased the capital disregard. A carer with a spouse or partner can now have capital up to €100,000 before it affects their payment. From July next year, a carer who is one of a couple can have household earnings of €65,789 per annum and receive full payment; earnings of €79,309 and receive payment equivalent to a half rate; and earnings of up to €91,269 and receive the minimum payment along with the secondary benefits. It has been increased considerably. We have come a long way but there is more to do. That is why I have set up an interdepartmental working group to look at the issue.

It is unacceptable that carers have to wait until next July, six months after everybody else, to get their increases. We can all be patronising and talk about what they do but they need the money now, not next July or August.

Fully abolishing the carer's allowance means test is recommended by research from the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. That is crucial. Once-off payments are insufficient to make lasting changes or a real difference for carers. The means test is the problem. A change of government may be necessary to see that happen; I believe it will.

During Covid, the Government said €350 per week was the minimum a person would need to survive.

Even with the increase in carer's allowance, carers will only get €260 per week, so the Minister cannot have her cake and eat it. During Covid the Government said it was €350 at a minimum but now carers are expected to live on €260. That is the situation. This is about the means test and the fact the Government is paying lip service, which it has said itself, and the way it misused the carers in its botched, wasteful referendums. They were threatened that if they did not go out and lobby for it their money might be caught; that was in inverted commas and not definite.

Also, St. Brigid's Hospital in Carrick-on-Suir will not open as a hospital ever again thanks to the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and the Minister, Deputy Donnelly. The respite beds are so badly needed. In addition, three palliative care beds were funded by the community there and the money has not been paid back to the community.

I believe St. Brigid's will open as a community healthcare network. There will be 28 people working there so there will be a lot of services-----

What about the patients?

------provided. Anyway, I will go back to what I am supposed to be answering here. To give the Deputy an example, a mother has two children aged 13 and eight and she is a carer for one of them. She currently receives carer's allowance with increases for her children that total €348 per week. That is a real example. Her weekly child support payment has increased by €8 for her older child and €4 for her younger child as a result of the budget. The total benefits to this mother post budget 2025 will be an annual increase of €2,906, so this budget has improved the situation for carers. As I said, income limits were increased in July, which is only three months ago, and this is already having a positive impact. There is a process we have to go through. The Department will engage with carers regarding the increased limits I have now announced and that work starts now. Over 90% of carers are already on the maximum rate of carer's allowance. I cannot pay carers for the work they do. That is why I have set up a working group to look at all these issues. It is going to report back before the end of the year, because this is something we want to deal with.