Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 September 2025
629. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of fuel allowance recipient households and total expenditure by local authority area; the claimant rates per 1,000 households to allow comparison between areas for 2024/2025 and 2025/2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51429/25]
View answerStatistics on fuel allowance recipients by county are published annually in the Department's Annual Statistics Report. It is not possible to break down fuel allowance recipients by local authority area as this data is not held by my Department; a table showing the county-breakdown at the end of 2024 is provided below.
Expenditure is recorded at the scheme level, not the individual level. Accordingly, it is not possible to attribute expenditure to individual-level characteristics such as the county. Funding for schemes is centrally allocated. The expenditure for fuel allowance in 2024 is shown in the below Table.
|
Scheme |
Expenditure (€million) |
|
Fuel Allowance (Social Assistance) |
285.59 |
|
Fuel Allowance (Social Insurance) |
224.64 |
The number of fuel allowance recipients at the end of 2024 is shown in the below Table. Statistics in respect of recipients of fuel allowance in September 2025 will be compiled in early October.
|
County |
Number of recipients |
|
Carlow |
6,618 |
|
Cavan |
7,588 |
|
Clare |
11,613 |
|
Cork |
43,992 |
|
Donegal |
20,578 |
|
Dublin |
88,299 |
|
Galway |
21,821 |
|
Kerry |
15,637 |
|
Kildare |
14,379 |
|
Kilkenny |
8,421 |
|
Laois |
7,391 |
|
Leitrim |
4,247 |
|
Limerick |
18,764 |
|
Longford |
5,384 |
|
Louth |
13,470 |
|
Mayo |
16,030 |
|
Meath |
13,093 |
|
Monaghan |
6,153 |
|
Offaly |
7,788 |
|
Roscommon |
7,006 |
|
Sligo |
7,121 |
|
Tipperary |
17,952 |
|
Waterford |
13,138 |
|
Westmeath |
8,296 |
|
Wexford |
17,477 |
|
Wicklow |
11,536 |
|
Other including those abroad or county unknown |
129 |
|
Total |
413,921 |
