Eileen Flynn (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I find a lot of people in my community do not know their rights when it comes to carers' rights.

In one sense it is like you are caring for your adult children. It is like you are being a mother but with extra layers of being a mother. Some people do not even know there is a payment. I know the Minister for Social Protection was in here before. The application forms are extremely tough to fill in. You will be denied your carer's allowance at least two or three times before you will actually get it. This is my experience of working with communities on the ground. I would love to work with Family Carers Ireland to see how we can make the information more visible to people. Many people would not know that next year they might have a right to a good pension because they have cared for a loved one or an extended family member. That would be very interesting going forward.