Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 27 November 2025
413. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Social Protection the timeline for introducing the cost of disability payment, given the findings of a report (details supplied); if he will consider implementing an emergency winter payment to offset the withdrawal of once-off supports provided in Budget 2025, in view of rising energy and living costs during the winter months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67193/25]
View answerThe Government recognises the significant additional costs that disabled people can face in their daily lives and is committed improving outcomes for disabled people by introducing permanent measures.
The Programme for Government commits to introducing a permanent Annual Cost of Disability Support Payment with a view to incrementally increasing this payment. Our Programme for Government commitments will be advanced over the lifetime of the Government, having regard to the overall policy and budgetary context.
In Budget 2026, I provided for a €1.15 billion package of new social protection measures.
Government has been very clear that there would be no once-off measures in this year’s Budget. We are at the start of a five-year programme for Government and not everything can be done in year one.
However, the Budget package contained significant targeted measures to support disabled people.
These measures include:
• A €10 increase in the weekly rates of payment, bringing the personal rates of payment to €254 per week from January.
• A Christmas bonus double payment to all persons getting a long-term disability payment, to be paid in December 2025.
• A €20 increase in the rate of Domiciliary Care Allowance bringing the rate to €380 per month.
• A €5 increase in the Fuel Allowance, bring it to €38 per week from January 2026.
• People moving from Disability Allowance or Blind Pension to take up work will be able to retain their Fuel Allowance payment for five years. The Back to Work Family Dividend is also being extended to this group, where they have children.
• From January, extending the Wage Subsidy Scheme to people who acquire a disability while in employment and increasing the rates paid from April.
• Increase the Earnings Disregard for Carer’s Allowance by €375 to €1,000 for a single person and by €750 to €2,000 for a couple from July 2026. The income limit for Carer’s Benefit will also increase by €375 to €1,000 per week from July 2026.
Overall, across Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension, Blind Pension and Domiciliary Care Allowance, over €250 million in additional funding has been made available when comparing the Revised Estimates for these schemes between 2025 and 2026.
The details supplied refer to a report on the cost of disability in Ireland, which was commissioned by my Department and published in 2021. The report includes extensive analysis that not only estimates the costs but also identifies important drivers of these costs. It found that the additional costs of disability spread across a number of areas of expenditure including additional living expenses, mobility, transport and communications, care and assistance services, equipment, aids and appliances, and medicines. A key conclusion is that a multifaceted whole-of-Government approach is required to address the cost of disability.
In recognition of this, the recently published National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 includes a commitment to a Strategic Focus Network on the Cost of Disability. This will be led by my Department but it will also involve other relevant Departments, given the cross-cutting nature of the issues. The work will be informed by the report to which the Deputy refers.
My officials have already held meetings with a number of organisations to discuss the possible structure and content of the Strategic Focus Network on the Cost of Disability. I will be meeting a number of organisations at the next meeting of my Department’s Disability Consultative Forum on 2 December at which the Cost of Disability Strategic Focus Network is the main agenda item.
I trust this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.
