Like previous speakers, I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Health (Amendment) (Home Support Providers) Bill 2025, which represents a significant and long-awaited step in reforming how home support services are regulated in this State. I want to quickly touch on my hope and expectation that this legislation becomes a real enabler of access to home supports across our country, particularly in regions like the west, where the need is acute. In the west, we are crying out for home care supports. I have many constituents, especially older people, people with disabilities and their families, who have been assessed as needing home support and are still waiting for months on a list. There are people who want to remain in their own homes and are trying to avoid hospital admission or premature placement in residential care, yet the supports they need simply sometimes are not there. This Bill matters because it begins to put structure, consistency and oversight into a system that has grown rapidly but unevenly by regulating providers, setting national standards and bringing transparency to who is delivering services. We finally have a foundation on which access can be expanded fairly and sustainably. For too long, access to home supports has been dependent on geography. In some parts of the country, services are available. In others, including large parts of the west, providers struggle to recruit, services are fragmented, and families are left waiting. Regulation alone is not a fix, but it is a necessary first step if we are serious about building capacity, supporting providers to operate safely and ensuring that services can be delivered consistently across our regions. My hope is that this Bill will not be an end to reform but, rather, the beginning. I hope it will support the development of a stronger home support sector, encourage provider stability and ultimately lead to shorter waiting lists and better access, particularly in areas that have been historically under-served. Regulation must mean more than standards on paper; for the people waiting at home in the west, including Galway East, regulation must translate into real supports. Delivery must be timely where we live. I concur with Deputy Butterly in acknowledging the people caring for and supporting people who want to remain at home. Like most people here, we are fundamentally aware of the daily challenges for carers. Sometimes all they need is respect. The one thing that is damning for them is that the respect is not shown from the legislative side. That is why I welcome moves that we are making here. We are all well aware of people who, as was mentioned, are caring on a 24-7 basis and do not look to the State for anything. They are doing a magnificent job out of love for a loved one who wants to remain at home. I want to say to those who do not demand pay, and those who are getting pay and need respect and support, that I thank them for that.

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