Grants of €1,000 for some 33,000 carers came into effect yesterday, Taoiseach Bertie Ahern confirmed in the Dáil.
Mr Ahern said the respite grant, payable regardless of means, "will be very beneficial", and he said the Government was now paying €115 million a year for the home help scheme.
He made his remarks in response to Opposition criticism of the cutting of home help hours. During a row over the Leas Cross nursing home controversy, Labour leader Pat Rabbitte said that "when the people who perform the home help service had to be paid the minimum rate, what the health boards did was to reduce the hours".
But the Taoiseach said the reduction was "because we were not able to get home helps".
Such home help hours were being cut in different parts of the country, Mr Rabbitte insisted.
"Because they were women and because they were doing 'menial work', which is a terrible description of the invaluable service they provide, they were paid buttons. Now they are paid the minimum rate and the Government cut the hours."
Mr Ahern agreed with Mr Rabbitte that those involved in home help had been "paid a pittance" but "we now pay €115 million to people".
But Fergus O'Dowd (FG, Louth) said home help had been reduced by 18,000 hours because the Government had to pay the minimum wage.
