I condemn the horrific attack in Belfast on Monday. Our thoughts are with the victim and his family. I also condemn the racist attacks last night and join others in calling for an end to the violence. I will talk to the Taoiseach today about the extreme pressure family carers are under. Some 71% are now struggling to make ends meet, according to the recent Family Carers Ireland report. Nearly half are experiencing extreme loneliness, are desperate for support that never comes and are feeling like their world is shrinking. This is an indictment of the Taoiseach's Government. The State, which should be there to help them, is actually making their lives harder and pushing an increasing number of carers into poverty. That is the grim reality. Imagine how frustrating it is for those carers to hear this Government's repeated claims that it values their work as they are forced to pay out-of-pocket for essential equipment and therapies that should be provided by the State. They are forced to jump through endless hoops just to qualify for carer's allowance and are living in constant fear that a new review or a new assessment will push them just over the threshold leaving them with nothing - no financial support and no services. Catherine Rossiter, who cares for her 12-year-old twins, Aoife and Eoghan, launched this report with Family Carers Ireland. She said: I often think my life is a test of human endurance. How much can I take as a carer before I break? What will happen to my young daughter and son then? The worry feels endless. This is the reality for so many carers across the country. They are exhausted, drained and filled with dread when they think about the future. The vast majority of carers in this position are women. They are saving the State billions of euro every year and what are they getting in return? Loneliness, burn-out and poverty. The Government has a growing reputation for making commitments and abandoning them. It committed to abolishing the means test for carers. Carers have had enough of empty promises, so will the Government keep this one? There is no excuse not to do so. We can afford it. It would cost €266 million, according to the report by the Parliamentary Budget Office. It could be paid for by tripling the bank levy on banks earning record profits, with money left over to invest in services. Will the Government abolish the means test for carers in the forthcoming budget? Will it give carers that reassurance of making that commitment to them now?

Sentiment score: -0.16

The Taoiseach says he acknowledges the role of carers and acknowledges the need to abolish the means test ultimately over the lifetime of this Government. I assume he acknowledges, then, that the changes in the threshold do not abolish it but, rather, slowly work towards that. I appreciate that the Government is doing that but if I am right, I can take it from the Taoiseach's reply that the Government does not plan to abolish it entirely in this budget, and that it is something it plans to do over the lifetime of the Government. I ask the Taoiseach to reconsider that because when you consider the very fortunate position the Government is in in terms of record surpluses as well as the reality of this report, which shows that 75% of carers have never received respite, 76% have cut back on non-essentials, 32% report bad mental health and 48% experience severe loneliness, this is something the Government can do now. It would cost €266 million when carers are saving the State billions of euro. I ask the Taoiseach to seriously reconsider and to consider doing this in the next budget. It is something the Government has committed to doing. It needs to happen now. Will the Government do it?

Sentiment score: -0.04