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Budget 2017 must deliver on pension pledge

Age Action has called on the Government to deliver on its election commitment to raise the State Pension by €25 over five years by providing a €5 increase in Budget 2017.

Ireland’s leading advocacy organisation for older people today set out its top priorities for next month’s budget.

Justin Moran, Head of Advocacy and Communications at Age Action, said: “Growing old in Ireland shouldn’t mean growing afraid, but it does.

“Pensioners are afraid of losing their home because of rising property taxes. They’re afraid of getting sick and relying on an ailing public health system.

“They’re afraid of being unable to afford medicine or to heat their homes. They’re afraid of going into a nursing home because there is no community care available.

“In February of this year, older people were promised that the State Pension would be increased by €25 a year over the next five years.

“Budget 2017 is the Government’s opportunity to make clear to almost 600,000 people over the age of 65 that the promises made to them will be honoured.”

During the summer hundreds of Age Action members met across the country and agreed their priorities for this year’s budget:

  • Increase the State Pension by €5;
  • Restore the Fuel Allowance and Telephone Allowance over the next two budgets;
  • An additional €73.8 million to fund 4.1 million home help hours;
  • The abolition of prescription charges for medical card holders.

Justin Moran continued: “The National Pensions Framework says that the State Pension should be maintained at 35 per cent of average earnings to keep pensioners out of poverty.

“But the State Pension is more than €13 below that target. More than 85,000 people over the age of 65 are living in deprivation and that number is rising.  

“Next month the Government can help to restore the incomes of pensioners, cut by successive austerity budgets, stand by its election pledge and deliver for our senior citizens.” 

Home supports

Age Action also highlighted the need for investment in supports to enable older people to remain longer in their homes.

Between 2004 and 2013 there was a 44 per cent increase in the number of older people living in nursing homes classified by the HSE as being ‘low dependency’. Funding for home help services fell from €211 million in 2011 to €185 million last year despite rising demand.

Justin Moran continued: “Our community care system is in crisis. Government policy says that we must support people to stay at home as long as possible.

“But the practice is to push more and more older people into nursing homes to the point that Ireland has the second highest proportion of people aged 65 and over in nursing homes and hospitals.

“The only way this is going to change is with a substantial increase in funding for home help services in this October’s budget and Age Action members will be making sure this message is heard."

As well as identifying the top priorities for older people in Budget 2017, Age Action also made individual submissions to a number of Government departments.

Age Action Awarded Investing In Volunteers National Quality Standard

Age Action is delighted to announce that we have been awarded the Investing in Volunteers quality standard. Investing in Volunteers (IiV) is the national quality standard for good practice in volunteer management in Ireland.

The Investing in Volunteers standard assesses the organisation’s volunteering programme in six areas: vision for volunteering, planning for volunteers, volunteer inclusion, recruiting and welcoming volunteers, supporting volunteers, and valuing and developing volunteers. As part of the process, we completed a self-assessment of our volunteering programme, and with the assistance of an Investing in Volunteers mentor, we then put together an improvement plan. Over the course of the assessment forty of our volunteers were interviewed as well as staff and board members.

Every year, hundreds of people volunteer with Age Action in our Getting Started digital literacy programme, and with our Care and Repair DIY Service. We would like to thank all of our wonderful volunteers who bring their time, energy and skills to Age Action and are the reason that our volunteering programme is so impactful. Volunteers are at the heart of our programmes and services at Age Action and without our volunteers we couldn’t fulfil our mission to support older people to live full and independent lives. Achieving the Investing in Volunteers quality standard shows our commitment to providing an experience that reflects how much we value our volunteers.

Here’s what some of our Volunteers said as part of the process:

‘I’ve gained a lot of skills from volunteering.  It has built my confidence in teamworking and communication.’

‘It keeps me active being able to help people and improve their quality of life’. 

‘I think they’ve got it just right with the amount of information to keep you in touch.  The monthly newsletter let’s you see what’s going on”.

“Emails keep you informed.  They are very willing to take suggestions on board, they encourage you to give them feedback’.

Going through the Investing in Volunteers process has helped us to review and improve our volunteering programme in its entirety, from how we recruit, train and support volunteers, to how we communicate with and involve our volunteers at all levels of the organisation. As we celebrate achieving the standard, we reiterate our commitment to providing the best possible volunteering experience for our volunteers who make an incredible difference in the lives of those older people we serve.