A Plaid Cymru Senedd Member has called on the Labour Government in Wales to deliver a better deal for unpaid carers in Wales.
Peredur Owen Griffiths MS said during Health plenary questions that the current picture for the estimated 310,000 careers in Wales is a “bleak one.”
The South Wales East MS said the number of carers in Wales is likely to be much higher and the collective care they provide is in excess of £10 billion.
He also made a call for better support for grassroots organisations that seek to support unpaid carers in their communities.
Speaking in the Senedd, Peredur said: “I've been in touch with carers and those representing them across my region, and the picture is a bleak one.
“They are exhausted, they feel isolated, and they are burdened financially. There are more than 310,000 carers in Wales according to the last census.
“It is estimated that the real number is much, much higher.
“The care they collectively provide could cost over £10 billion, a staggering amount that is equal to our entire NHS budget.
“If we are to do the right thing by carers, more carers need to be identified, have their needs assessed, and go on to receive the support that they're entitled to.
“To not address this risks condemning another generation of carers to ill health, poverty and desperation.”
He added: “How are you planning to address the status quo that fails so many carers?
“Have you considered better support for grass-roots carers forums that do well at providing support and advice, but often fold or struggle through the lack of backing?”
In response, Dawn Bowden, Cabinet Secretary for Children and Social Care, said that local authorities were not fulfilling their statutory obligations to unpaid carers as quickly as they should be and she would be “writing directly to the leader of every local authority in Wales, to say that this has to be given a priority in the way that we deal with unpaid carers.”