I thank the Members who tabled the motion. I support the motion and the amendment.

We know the problems that face countless families across the North who are being failed by the current social care system. It is overstretched and underfunded. The issues affect everyone from our elderly and the most vulnerable to the workers who care for them. It has been seven years since the 'Power to People' report was commissioned, and we still face the same challenges: persistent workforce shortages, care home capacity constraints and long waits for community care packages. Those issues were only made worse by the COVID pandemic and the number of people who came out of the caring profession at that time.

In rural areas, such as my constituency of Mid Ulster, the challenges are even more severe. Families wait far too long for care packages, and care workers face travelling long distances and inadequate support. They are not funded to drive those distances or to provide the care that they provide; we know that. The Minister is well aware of that. The Department is looking at all those issues. I attended a meeting with Carers NI and carers from rural communities last week. They told me nothing that, unfortunately, I did not already know as a representative of a rural constituency. We know that the challenges for those in our rural communities are much more difficult.

The Reimagine Children's Collective, which we spoke about this morning, brings together 10 major charities, and it has echoed those concerns in its recent briefing on children's social care. It highlighted all the struggles that we will have without urgent reforms. I note that some commentary in the debate this morning was about collaboration: I absolutely agree with that. We need collaboration across Departments, but we need it mostly with our communities and the community and voluntary sector, because they really can deliver the services at good value. We need to ensure that that collaboration happens.

The amendment also brings an important issue to the forefront: unfair and inconsistent charging for adult social care. In areas such as Mid Ulster, where incomes are often lower and services more difficult to access, those inconsistencies hit families hardest. Independent price regulation is essential to ensure fairness. No family should have to choose between paying for care and other basic necessities.

Additionally, I emphasise the need for early intervention and prevention in both adult and children's care. Again, that point was covered in the debate on the motion this morning. We know that early intervention can make a real difference. I spoke about Sure Start, but many programmes deliver early intervention. I know that tackling health inequalities is a priority for the Minister. We will be able to do that only through early intervention programmes. I look forward to hearing what the Minister will say on that.

The community and voluntary sector, as I said, plays a vital role. We must ensure that it is properly resourced. It is not just about the amount of money that it gets — I know that the sector has made the Minister well aware of that point and that it is being looked at — it is about how the sector is funded and how the groups can work together on funding, instead of doing what we have done for years, where everybody looks at one pot and thinks, "How can I get some out of that?". They want to work together, and we need to fund them in a way that allows them to work together.

We must listen to the people whom we serve. We must listen to the families who are struggling in our rural areas. We must listen to the children and young people who require our services. We need a family charter that is co-designed with young people and parents. That would ensure that families know what to expect from the system and have recourse if standards are not met.

This is about equity, dignity and fairness. Social care reform cannot wait any longer. We have been presented with the tools to address the issues, and we now need to take the issue in hand and work with people such as the Reimagine Children's Collective and others to deliver on that. For our elderly, our carers and our children in Mid Ulster and in rural constituencies across the North, there can be no more delays. We need to work together to create a social care system that reflects the values of fairness and compassion and serves all citizens of the North equally, no matter where they live.