ALONE launches General Election Manifesto #AGE16

Charity urges public to seek commitment from candidates that they will support older people to age at home

Dublin, 12th February 2016, ALONE has today launched its General Election Manifesto #AGE16.  We are asking the government to implement plans for our ageing demographic and commit to four key aspects that will ensure Ireland’s older population are supported to age at home with dignity.  We are also asking the public to make sure their candidates will prioritise the needs of our ageing demographic if they are elected.

ALONE are a national, quality approved charity and have developed unique cost effective models that supports older people to age at home.  Our #AGE16 campaign for this general election is asking the Government to support older people to age at home through:

• Greater investment in services in the community
• Alternative models of housing for older people
• Securer pensions
• The Appointment of a Minister for our Ageing Demographic

Sean Moynihan, CEO of ALONE, commented “We feel that ALONE’s manifesto lays out very reasonable and achievable goals for the next Government. Every year there is an extra 20,000 older people in Ireland, and this figure is expected to continue growing exponentially. We are an independently funded charity and we work every day to provide services to people who are falling between the cracks. We are just asking that the Government prioritises supports for older people so that we can ensure that Ireland is a place where everyone can age at home if it is their wish.”

“It’s clear that we need to radically change how we support our older demographic.  We urgently need to look at how we can enable a greater number of older people to age in our communities, because continuing with the same model of overcrowding in hospital and emergency departments and high numbers in nursing home care is simply not sustainable.  As well as being what most people want, ageing at home also makes economic sense. It is vital that plans to enable ageing at home are included in the programme for government.”

Moynihan continued, “We are asking the public to inform canvassers and candidates that they will consider the needs of older people a priority when making their decisions on Election Day. Prioritising the needs of our older people is something that everyone should take an interest in as inevitably we all grow older and the decisions we make now will impact us later.”

Join the conversation about the ALONE’s General Election 16 Manifesto using #AGE16.