Family carers in Ireland provide over six million hours of unpaid care every week, saving the State around €4 billion annually, according to the charity, Family Carers Ireland.

It has just launched its pre-Election campaign, ‘Achieving Fairness for Family Carers'.

According to the charity, almost 200,000 family carers in Ireland provide 6,287,510 hours of unpaid care every week, ‘yet despite the enormity of this contribution, family carers are struggling'.

It noted that since 2009, there has been a €2.7 billion cut in health and social care spending and this has led to a reduction in vital services, such as respite, home care and residential services.

The charity acknowledged that efforts have been made to reverse some of these cuts, but with the economy now slowly recovering, it is calling on the incoming government to prioritise carers, which it describes as ‘one of Ireland's greatest natural resources'.

"Their work saves the State €4 billion each year. Despite this contribution, many carers find it more and more difficult to get respite and access services. Isolation, financial hardship, depression, stress, poor health and exclusion from paid work remain hallmarks of many carers' lives," explained Catherine Cox of Family Carers Ireland.

She insisted that because of Ireland's ageing population, care in the home ‘is one of the biggest health service issues facing the incoming government'.

"We are asking politicians to commit to investing in and implementing real supports for family carers that fit with the realities of caring in Ireland today," she said.

The charity is calling on candidates to make five key commitments if they are elected to Government:

-Ensure family carers are not financially burdened by their role as a carer
-Create a more carer-friendly health service, eliminating delays and bureaucracy
-Invest in the future of young carers. More than 56,000 young people aged between 10 and 17 are thought to provide care to loved ones. However this is a particularly vulnerable group as many do not know where to get help and remain hidden from services due to family loyalty, fear and stigma
-Publish and implement phase two of the National Carers' Strategy
-Support issues affecting carers, both nationally and locally.

For more information on Family Carers Ireland, click here