As the Deputy will appreciate, I cannot comment at this stage on the outcome of the estimates process, or matters which will be the subject of national service planning in 2022.
As Minister for Health, I am committed to improving supports for family carers. Under the National Carer’s Strategy a range of measures have been introduced or extended by my Department to support family carers in recent years. Most recently, €2m was allocated in Budget 2021 as a first step towards implementing a Carers’ Guarantee. My Department has been in consultation with representative groups and the HSE to ensure the funding addresses geographical inequity of access to carer supports.