Written Answers Nos. 335-354
335. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Social Protection if a reduced debt repayment plan on an overpayment will be accepted from a person in County Kerry (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28651/24]
View answerOverpayments of social welfare assistance and benefit payments arise as a consequence of decisions made under the relevant sections of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 2005 (as amended). Customers who have been overpaid social welfare have a liability to refund the overpayment as they have been in receipt of a payment to which they were not entitled.
The customers referred to by the Deputy was issued a notification to repay an overpayment on the 14th June 2024. Also included in that notification was a FORM A which allows the customer, who has been overpaid, an opportunity to put forward any facts or circumstances that he wished to be taken into consideration regarding the recovery of the overpayment.
The FORM A should be completed by the customer and returned to Department of Social Protection, Central Debt Unit, Shannon Lodge, Carrick On Shannon, Co. Leitrim. Proof of his personal insolvency arrangements should also be provided. A decision, taking into consideration the facts of the case, on a suitable recovery plan will then be made.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
336. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection if there are supports through community welfare services for direct provision centres for the cost of pre-test driving lessons and Safe Pass fees. [28695/24]
View answerMy Department’s Intreo Employment Services team works with jobseekers to identify supports and interventions to assist them to become job ready. This includes support with accessing training. The Community Welfare Service has no function in this area.
Safe Pass is a mandatory safety awareness training programme for construction workers. The Safe Pass programme is operated and managed by SOLAS, the Further Education and Training Authority. Generally the employer pays for the Safe Pass course.
The Training Support Grant (TSG), available through my Department, is designed to support quick access to short-term training where the training is not delivered by a State provider. The grant can be provided where an immediate skills gap is identified that represents an obstacle to taking up a job offer or accessing other opportunities. The grant can be used for training up to level 6 on the QQI or training such as safe pass, driving licences, HACCP or security industry permits as appropriate. The scheme is not designed to substitute training funded under other programmes and agencies, such as SOLAS or the Education Training Boards.
The primary focus of this scheme is on jobseekers and on supporting the activation policy of the department. International protection applicants with permission from the Department of Justice to access the labour market may also be considered for TSG funding. There are qualifying conditions and all applications require prior approval. Anyone interested in applying should first contact their Local Intreo Office to speak with an Employment Personal Advisor.
337. Deputy Steven Matthews asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding the number of schools in County Wicklow currently providing a hot school meals programme; the number of additional schools that will begin to provide this service in the new school year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28711/24]
View answerThe objective of the School Meals Programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Following the expansion of the programme in recent years, some 2,600 schools and organisations, covering 443,000 children are now eligible for funding.
The Hot School Meal option of the programme was introduced in 2019 and is currently solely available to primary schools. Since my appointment as Minister for Social Protection, I have increased the number of schools with access to the Hot School Meal option from an initial pilot of 30 schools to a position where over 2,000 primary schools now eligible to receive a hot meal.
I am committed to continuing to expand the School Meals Programme and building further on the significant extension of the programme that has taken place in recent years. As part of this significant expansion plan, all remaining primary schools were contacted last year and requested to submit an expression of interest form if their school was interested in commencing the provision of hot school meals.
Expressions of interests were received from over 900 primary schools in respect of 150,000 children and late last year these schools were invited to participate in the Hot School Meals Programme from 8th April 2024.
My Department has now contacted the remaining primary schools who have not yet joined the Hot School Meals scheme asking them to submit expressions of interest in commencing the provision of hot school meals. Details of the schools involved will be announced in due course.
Currently 37 primary schools in County Wicklow are availing of hot school meals for the 2023/2024 school year. Details of these schools can be found in the tabular statement below.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
Primary Schools in Wicklow currently in receipt of hot meals to date as of 28th June 2024
|
Roll Number |
School |
|
01782O |
SN Naomh Padraig |
|
06176U |
Blessington 1 NS |
|
10111O |
Lacken Mxd NS |
|
10131U |
Moin An Bhealaigh NS |
|
12554M |
St Patrick's NS |
|
13679O |
Delgany NS |
|
14398L |
Glebe NS |
|
14972R |
All Saints NS |
|
15676S |
Padraig Naofa NS |
|
16027J |
SN Muire |
|
16924Q |
Caoimhin Naofa NS |
|
17576B |
Scoil An Choroin Mhuire |
|
17669I |
SN Treasa Naomha |
|
17920N |
Donard NS |
|
18033O |
Kilcommon NS |
|
18054W |
Hollywood NS |
|
18118W |
Coolfancy NS |
|
18198A |
Padraig Naofa N S |
|
18242A |
Carnew NS |
|
18365Q |
Kilmacanogue NS |
|
18408I |
New Court School |
|
18464S |
St. Peter's Primary School |
|
18502A |
SN Naomh Brid |
|
19339U |
Stratford Lodge NS |
|
19522L |
St Catherines Special School |
|
19734D |
St Francis NS |
|
20080M |
Gaelscoil An Inbhir Mhoir |
|
20110S |
S N Mhuire Senior School |
|
20178G |
Wicklow Educate Together NS |
|
20208M |
St Coen's NS |
|
20243O |
Gaelscoil Na Lochanna |
|
20278K |
Newtownmountkennedy Primary School |
|
20346B |
Kilcoole Primary School |
|
20466L |
St Fergal's NS |
|
20469R |
St John's Senior School |
|
20470C |
St Michael's and St Peter's Junior School |
|
20524W |
Woodstock Educate Together NS |
338. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 405 of 23 April and 209 of 30 May 2024, to provide updated long-term projections; how the level of pension and other social supports payments are calculated; whether they are adjusted in line with inflation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28759/24]
View answerThe position is unchanged with regard to Question No. 209 of 30 May 2024. No further projections are available at this time.
This Social Insurance Fund forecast is prepared annually for the Stability Programme Update and is produced on a no policy change basis. This means that potential future measures, such as increases to the rate of payment for social protection schemes were not taken into account. However, account was taken of measures that had already been announced when the forecast was produced. For example, the forecast took account of the future impact all Budget 2024 measures, even if they had not been implemented at the time the forecast was produced.
In relation to the expenditure forecasts, the following was taken into account:
• All measures included in Budget 2024 (note no provision for once-off measures in future years, including the Christmas Bonus)
• Increasing recipient numbers on pensions and related schemes due to demographics
In relation to the income forecasts, the following was taken into account:
• Macro-economic forecasts produced by the Department of Finance for the years 2024 to 2027
• PRSI increases of 0.1% from October 2024, 0.1% from October 2025, 0.15% from October 2026 and 0.15% from October 2027, which had been agreed by Government prior to the forecast being produced.
I also refer to Question No 405 of 23 April 2024 which includes cashflow projections for the Social Insurance Fund that factor in the estimated yield from the agreed PRSI increases from 2024 to 2028. I can confirm this estimate remains unchanged. Appendix 6 of the Actuarial Review of the Social Insurance Fund 31 December 2021 report contains the “Methodology, Data and Other Assumptions” used throughout the analysis. As regards the calculation used for projecting pension and other social supports payments, these benefits are modelled to increase from the 2023 levels in line with real wage growth.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
339. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of abolishing the means test for carer’s allowance and providing access to all who meet the other criteria for it; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28856/24]
View answerThe Government acknowledges the valuable role that family carers play and is fully committed to supporting carers in that role. This commitment is recognised in both the Programme for Government and the National Carers’ Strategy.
The main income supports to carers provided by my department are Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant. Spending on these payments is expected to amount to over €1.7 billion this year.
The Carer’s Allowance scheme is the main scheme by which the Department provides income support to carers in the community. In 2024 the expenditure on the Carer’s Allowance scheme is estimated to be over €1.1 billion and there are currently 97,127 people receiving this payment.
It is important to note that Carer’s Allowance is a financial support to people who cannot earn, or can only earn a limited income, due to their caring responsibilities and who have no other means or resources to rely upon. The Carer’s Allowance is not and never was intended to be a payment for the provision of caring.
The two principal conditions for receipt of Carer’s Allowance are that full time care and attention is required and provided, and that a means test is satisfied.
The use of means tests in the social welfare system is a method of targeting scarce resources to those that have most need. Removal of the means assessment for Carer’s Allowance, would not only change the nature of the scheme as an income support but would also have significant policy and budgetary implications and reduce the scope for the Department to provide income supports to lower income households.
The estimated cost of abolishing the means test for Carer’s Allowance and providing access to all those who fulfil the provision of full-time care condition is conservatively estimated in the region of €600m per annum. Those carers who rely solely on the income from the Carer’s Allowance payment would not benefit from the abolition of the disregard.
Since my appointment as Minister, I have made a number of significant improvements to the means test for Carer's Allowance.
• In June 2022 the income disregards were increased from €332.50 to €350 for a single person, and from €665 to €750 for carers with a spouse/partner. The capital and savings disregard for the Carer’s Allowance means assessment was also increased from €20,000 to €50,000.
• Last month, the weekly income disregards were increased further, from €350 to €450 for a single person, and from €750 to €900 for carers with a spouse/partner.
These changes mean that carers on a reduced rate move to a higher payment. In addition, many carers who previously did not qualify for a payment due to their means are brought into the Carer's Allowance system for the first time.
The means test disregards for Carer's Allowance are the highest in the Social Welfare system.
Notwithstanding these improvements, as part of Budget 2024, I established an Interdepartmental Working Group with the Department of Health and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to examine and review the system of means test for carer's payments. This work is ongoing, and I have asked the Group to report to me on the matter in Quarter 3 of this year.
It is also important to acknowledge that there are a range of other supports for carers provided by the Department which are not based on a means assessment.
• The Carer’s Support Grant can be claimed by carers regardless of their means or social insurance contributions. I increased this grant to €1,850, its highest ever rate.
• Carer's Benefit is a weekly payment based on social insurance contributions rather than a means test and is payable for a period of up to 2 years.
• Domiciliary Care Allowance is payable to a parent or guardian in respect of a child who has a severe disability and requires continual or continuous care and attention substantially over and above the care and attention usually required by a child of the same age. As part of Budget 2024 we have increased the payment by another €10 bringing it to €340 per month.
I trust that this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.
340. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of extending child benefit to all children aged 18 years or under, including those in the international protection process; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28857/24]
View answer341. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing child benefit by 10% and extending payment to all children aged 18 years or under, including those in the international protection process; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28858/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 340 and 341 together.
Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children up to the age of 16 years. Currently, the payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their 19th birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. The extension of child benefit to 18 year olds was one of my key priorities in Budget 2024 and I am very pleased that we were able to bring that change in from May this year.
Child Benefit is currently in payment in respect of approximately 1.2 million children with an estimated expenditure of €2.1 billion for 2024.
Child Benefit is paid at €140 per month, with twins being paid at 150% per child and triplets being paid at 200% per child. The cost of increasing Child Benefit by 10% would result in additional annual expenditure on the scheme of approximately €217 million based on the estimated number of recipients in 2024. It should be noted that this estimate is subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients.
Where a child has a disability, Child Benefit continues to be payable until the child's 19th birthday whether or not the child is in full-time education. Otherwise, 16, 17 and 18 year olds must be in full time education in order for the payment to continue. There are currently no plans to extend Child Benefit in respect of 16, 17 or 18 year olds who are not in full-time education or training. It is important that the Child Benefit payment reflects our policy objective of encouraging young people to remain in education or to avail of the very many training options that are available to them including those available through YouthReach and the Community Training Centres.
To receive Child Benefit in Ireland, parents must be habitually resident in the State. Applicants for International Protection do not satisfy the Habitual Residence Condition and are therefore not eligible for Child Benefit.
Applicants for International Protection, who are awaiting a decision on their application, are offered accommodation by the International Protection Accommodation Services of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. Those who accept such accommodation are provided with material reception conditions, including food and health services together with other facilities and services designed to ensure their needs are met while seeking the protection of the State.
My Department administers the Daily Expenses Allowance which is paid to protection applicants, who reside in accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Services, in order to meet incidental, personal expenses. The current weekly rates of payment are €38.80 per adult and €29.80 per child. There are approximately 16,000 adults and 3,500 children residing in IPAS provided accommodation in respect of whom daily expenses allowance is being paid.
It is not possible to accurately estimate the cost of extending Child Benefit in respect of any children not already covered by the scheme.
I trust this clarifies matters for the Deputy.
342. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing the carer’s support grant to €2,500; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28859/24]
View answerThe estimated full year cost of increasing the annual Carer's Support Grant by €650 to €2.500 is €102.1 million.
This costing is based on the estimated average number of recipients in 2024, and is subject to change in light of emerging trends and subsequent revision of the estimated number of recipients.
343. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing the domiciliary care allowance to €350; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28860/24]
View answerThe estimated full year cost of increasing Domiciliary Care Allowance by €10 to €350 per month is €7.6 million.
This costing is based on the estimated average number of recipients in 2024, and is subject to change in light of emerging trends and subsequent revision of the estimated number of recipients.
344. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of providing free school meals for all post-primary school pupils in public schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28861/24]
View answerThe objective of the School Meals Programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The Programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Following the expansion of the Programme in recent years, some 2,600 schools and organisations, covering 443,000 children are now eligible for funding.
Funding under the School Meals Programme can be provided for breakfast, snack, cold lunch, dinner, hot school meals and afterschool clubs and is based on a maximum rate per child per day, depending on the type of meal being provided. The school meals programme operates for 33 weeks in an academic year for all post-primary schools.
Using the maximum rate of €2.45 daily per pupil (consisting of both a breakfast and a cold lunch with a drink) the estimated full-year cost of providing free school meals to all DEIS and Non-DEIS post-primary pupils is €168.4 million.
Using the maximum rate of €3.25 daily per pupil (consisting of both a breakfast and a dinner with a drink) the estimated full-year cost of providing free school meals to all DEIS and Non-DEIS post-primary pupils is €223.4 million.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
345. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of extending eligibility for the fuel allowance to all pensioners, to all in receipt of the working family payment and/or a medical card; the estimated full-year cost of abolishing the waiting period of a year for those on jobseeker’s allowance, and of increasing the rate by €20 per week; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28863/24]
View answer346. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of extending eligibility for the household benefits package to all pensioners and to all in receipt of the working family payment and/or a medical card; and of increasing the rate to €60; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28864/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 345 and 346 together.
My Department does not hold data on persons in receipt of a medical card and is therefore unable to provide a costing for the extension of Fuel Allowance or Household Benefits to this cohort.
The detail requested by the Deputy in relation to the remining cohorts is not readily available. My Department is in the process of collating the data in question and will revert with a reply directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
347. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of restoring the pension age to 65 years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28865/24]
View answerIt is important to note that the State Pension age was never 65 years of age. The State Pension (Contributory) and State Pension (Non-Contributory) were never paid at 65 years of age.
Reducing the State Pension age to 65 years would increase pension related expenditure significantly. My Department does not have a detailed actuarial analysis of this option. However, a high-level estimate of the cost of introducing State Pension payments at the age of 65 based on current State Pension (Contributory) and State Pension (Non-Contributory) rates of payment (€277.3 and €266 respectively) from 01/01/2025 is an additional €415million for one year only.
This high-level estimate is based on net costs for future State Pension (Contributory) and State Pension (Non-Contributory) qualifiers but does not include estimates for any changes to household benefits, free travel or fuel allowance costs. In addition, the figure takes no account of any additional costs to public sector pensions.
The "Benefit Payment for 65 year olds" was introduced in line with the Programme for Government commitment, to provide a benefit payment for people who are aged 65 and who are required to retire, or who chose to retire, without a requirement to sign on, engage in activation measures or be available for, and genuinely seeking work. This payment was designed specifically to bridge the gap for people who retire from employment or self-employment at 65 years of age but who do not qualify for the State Pension until age 66.
Following on from the recommendations of the Pensions Commission, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is introducing measures that allow, but do not compel, an employee to stay in employment until the State Pension age.
Demographic projections indicate significant increases in the number of future State Pension recipients which will impact on State Pension related expenditure. Clearly, reducing the State Pension age to 65 years of age would be very expensive and would require either considerable additional revenues, or, if introduced on a cost-neutral basis, very significant diversion of funds from elsewhere.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
348. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing all headline weekly social protection payments to €350 per week; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28866/24]
View answerThe estimated full year cost of increasing all weekly social welfare payments to €350 per week is €6,976.9 million.
This includes a proportionate increase for Qualified Adults. These costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients.
349. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing all headline weekly social protection payment to €300 per week, excluding disability-related payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28867/24]
View answerThe estimated full year cost of increasing all weekly social welfare payments to €300 per week is €2,798.3 million. This includes a proportionate increase for Qualified Adult.
These costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients.
Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension, Partial Capacity, Disablement Pension and Blind Person’s Pension are excluded from the above costings.
350. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing disability, blind pensions and invalidity pension to €350 per week. [28868/24]
View answerMy Department provides a number of income supports for those unable to work due to illness or disability. These include insurance-based schemes, based on Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contributions, and means tested social assistance schemes.
The main long term disability payment supports are Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension and Blind Pension. Disability Allowance and Blind Pension are means tested payments while Invalidity Pension is a social insurance payment.
The combined number of recipients of these payments was over 221,600 as of April 2024.
Based on the current recipients of disability payments from my Department, the estimated annual costs associated with increasing the personal rate of Disability Allowance, Blind Pension and Invalidity Pension to €350 per week would be approximately €1.34 billion in a full year.
I have introduced many improvements across these schemes in my time as Minister for Social Protection. The personal rates increased by €24 per week over the last 2 budgets with proportionate increases for qualified adults.
In addition, the earnings disregard for recipients of Disability Allowance and Blind pension has increased by almost 38% over the last four budgets from €120 to €140 to €165 currently. This enables a person to earn more without having a negative impact on their means tested payment. A person can currently earn up to €165 per week and keep their payment in full and can earn up to €505.10 and keep a small portion of their payment and keep their secondary benefits, if applicable.
I will continue to keep the range of supports provided by this Department under review. However, any changes to the current supports provided would have to be considered in an overall budgetary and policy context.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
351. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing maternity, paternity and parent’s benefit to €300 a week. [28869/24]
View answerMaternity Benefit its payable for 26 weeks and Paternity Benefit is payable for two weeks. Currently seven weeks of Parent's Benefit is available for each eligible parent but, as a result of measures in Budget 2024, this will increase to nine weeks per parent from next month.
Maternity Benefit, Parent's Benefit and Paternity Benefit are paid at €274 per week. The estimated full year additional cost of increasing the rates of these payments by €26 to €300 per week is as follows:
|
Parent's Benefit |
Maternity Benefit |
Paternity Benefit |
|
€9,368,011 |
€26,599,187 |
€1,357,074 |
The costs shown above are on a full year basis with the estimated number of recipients in 2024. It should be noted that these costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients.
Changes to payment rates can only be considered in a budgetary context.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
352. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing maternity benefit to €300 a week and extending it to 52 weeks. [28870/24]
View answer353. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing maternity benefit to 52 weeks at current levels of payment. [28871/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 352 and 353 together.
Maternity Benefit is a payment for employed women who are on Maternity Leave from work, and and self-employed women, who satisfy certain PRSI contribution conditions. It is currently paid for twenty-six weeks at the weekly rate of €274 per week.
Any decision to extend the period of Maternity Leave for employees is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, who has policy and legal responsibility for Maternity Leave. Any extension of this leave would require careful consideration and consultation with relevant stakeholders.
The cost of extending Maternity Benefit by 26 weeks, from 26 weeks to 52 weeks, at the current weekly payment rate of €274 would result in an additional increase of annual expenditure on the scheme of approximately €290 million.
The cost of extending the duration of Maternity Benefit by 26 weeks, from 26 week to 52 weeks, and also increasing the weekly payment rate by €26, from €274 to €300, would result in additional annual expenditure on the scheme of approximately €367 million.
These estimates are based on a full year basis and on the number of recipients in 2024. It should be noted that this costing is subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated number of recipients.
These estimates do not reflect any additional costs which may be incurred by employers who provide substitution or salary top-ups which, in the Civil and Public Sector, would be a matter for my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
354. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of extending parent’s benefit to 52 weeks. [28872/24]
View answer355. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of extending parent’s benefit to 52 weeks and increasing the level of the payment to €300 a week. [28873/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 354 and 355 together.
Parents Benefit is a payment for employed and self-employed people who are on Parents Leave from work who satisfy certain PRSI contribution conditions. It is currently paid for seven weeks and has been extended to nine weeks from the first of August 2024 at €274 per week.
Any decision to extend the period of Parents Leave for employees is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, who has policy and legal responsibility for the scheme. Any extension of this leave would require careful consideration and consultation with relevant stakeholders.
The cost of extending Parents Benefit by 43 weeks, from 9 weeks to 52 weeks, at the currently weekly rate of €274 would result in an additional annual expenditure on the scheme of approximately €606 million.
The cost of extending Parents Benefit, by 43 weeks, from 9 weeks to 52 weeks, and also increasing the weekly rate by €26, from €274 to €300, would result in an increase of annual expenditure on the scheme of approximately €667 million.
These estimates are based on a full year basis and on the number of recipients in 2024. It should be noted that this costing is subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated number of recipients.
These estimates do not reflect any additional costs which may be incurred by employers who provide substitution or salary top-ups which, in the Civil and Public Sector, would be a matter for my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
