Written Answers Nos. 398-416
398. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Social Protection if, when a person withdraws an appeal against the refusal to award DCA and re-submits their application again, and this is awarded, if any backdating will be to the date of the first submission or the second; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66840/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraWhen a DCA claim is awarded, it is paid from the month following the date of receipt of the most recent application, and the decision is based on the care requirements of the child at that date of application. However, under Social Welfare legislation, a case can be made to have the payment backdated up to a maximum of 6 months.
It is open to applicants who have withdrawn an appeal of an earlier application for DCA to request a review by a Deciding Officer with any extra evidence they think is relevant to the care needs of the child from the earlier date.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
399. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Social Protection if fire fighters with the Dublin Fire Brigade with a preserved pension age of 55 are entitled to the same benefit payment that 65 year-olds are entitled to on retirement; if this benefit is the same or equivalent to the pay related job seeker’s benefit; the length of time this is paid without means testing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66841/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Benefit Payment for 65-Year-Olds, provided for under the Jobseeker’s Benefit scheme, was introduced in line with the Programme for Government commitment to address the position of people who are required to or choose to retire at age 65 before the State pension age of 66. The payment is designed to bridge the gap for people who retire from employment or self-employment at age 65 until they qualify for the State Pension at age 66. To be eligible for the payment a person must satisfy the qualifying conditions of the scheme including the PRSI social insurance contribution requirements, which demonstrates a recent attachment to the workforce.
Jobseeker’s Benefit Payment for 65-Year-Olds is a PRSI-based insurance, it is not means tested and may be paid for one year from the date of the person’s 65th birthday until the date of person’s 66th birthday, as long as they continue to satisfy the conditions for this payment. It is paid at the standard jobseeker's rate and is not pay-related.
Jobseeker’s Pay-Related Benefit is an income support for a person who becomes unemployed and is directly linked to their previous earnings. It is paid for a maximum of 6 months or 9 months depending on the amount of qualifying social insurance contributions paid. It is a different scheme to Jobseeker’s Benefit Payment for 65-Years-Old due to the differing contingency it is designed for, specifically loss of employment rather than retirement at age 65.
I trust that this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
400. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will provide a list of all services which have been subject to tender processes related to the My Future Fund and the auto-enrolment retirement savings system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66847/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra401. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will provide a list of all companies who have submitted tenders to provide services to the My Future Fund and auto-enrolment retirement savings scheme, and where applicable, which companies have been awarded the contracts in each instance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66850/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra402. Deputy Eoin Hayes asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will provide information on any requests from his Department to other Government departments for support or advice during the design and planning of the auto-enrolment retirement savings system, and on the management of the My Future Fund; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66851/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 400, 401 and 402 together.
The Programme for Government contains a commitment to introduce the Automatic Enrolment (AE) Retirement Savings System. The aim of introducing AE is to address the pension coverage gap that exists in Ireland and to provide workers with greater comfort and security regarding their retirement income. The new system - to be known as My Future Fund - will commence from 1 January 2026. The implementation of My Future Fund will pave the way for around 750,000 workers to be brought into a retirement savings scheme for the first time and I look forward to its implementation.
My Department has conducted two procurement processes for the provision of services related to the implementation of My Future Fund. The first procurement process was for a managed service provider to develop and operate the administration of My Future Fund. This procurement was conducted though a Competitive Procedure with Negotiation process. This involved a two stage process consisting of: Stage 1: Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ); and Stage 2: Request for Tender. The following five companies responded to the PQQ: Accenture Limited, FNZ, PlaNet21, SS&C Technologies, and Tata Consultancy Services. The two companies that progressed to Stage 2 were Accenture Limited and Tata Consultancy Services. The contract for these services was ultimately awarded to Tata Consultancy Services.
The second procurement process was for investment management services. On foot of a request for tender the following companies submitted bids: Amundi; BlackRock; DWS; Irish Life Investment Managers; Legal & General Investment Management; Mercer; Northern Trust, and State Street Global Advisors. Following a rigorous evaluation process the following companies were selected as the preferred bidders for this service: Amundi, Blackrock and Irish Life Investment Managers.
As with any Government initiative, in designing the AE system and the management of My Future Fund, my Department worked across a range of Government departments and agencies, through the Cabinet Committee structure and through bilateral engagements. These included the Department of Finance in relation to taxation matters, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation in relation to the staffing and financing of the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority (NAERSA), the Revenue Commissioners in relation to the payroll data requirements and the Pensions Authority in respect of pension systems more generally.
I hope this clarifies matters for the Deputy.
403. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Social Protection if there are any social welfare payments available to a farmer who was injured and cannot work on their farm due to this injury (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66861/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme is the safety net within the overall social welfare system in that it provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents.
The Basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance provides immediate assistance for those in need who are awaiting the outcome of a claim or an appeal for a primary social welfare payment or do not qualify for payment under other State schemes.
In addition, under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income or other personal and household resources.
Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to Supplementary Welfare Allowance is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office. In addition, applications for Additional Needs Payments can be made online via [www.mywelfare.ie].
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
404. Deputy John Connolly asked the Minister for Social Protection whether the ECO and ACRES schemes are considered environmental schemes for the purposes of means assessment in respect of farm assist, State pension (non-contributory) and supplementary welfare allowance payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66879/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraFarm Assist is the main social welfare income support for farmers. It is a statutory means-tested income support specifically for farmers on low incomes. There are approximately 3,400 claims in payment at present. The Government has provided almost €47 million for the scheme in 2025.
Legislation provides for a disregard in the means test for Farm Assist for income from a range of agri-environmental schemes. Under this disregard, the first €5,000, increased from €2540 from January 2023, of such income is disregard in full, with 50% of the balance assessed as means. The disregard also applies to Jobseeker's Allowance and State Pension (Non-Contributory) but not to Supplementary Welfare Allowance.
The agri-environmental schemes concerned have an environmental focus and in the context of the Government's climate change agenda, the disregard for income received from them aims to incentivise farmers to participate in them, and results in a more beneficial means assessment for those customers who have income from these schemes.
A Review into the means test disregards for Farm Assist completed in 2021 recommended that the list of agri-environmental schemes that qualify for the disregard should be significantly increased. The list was expanded from June 2022 and again from April 2023, increasing from 4 schemes to 29 schemes. The ACRES scheme has been included on this list from April 2023.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has advised that the ECO scheme is not considered an agri-environmental scheme and is considered to be a payment under the Direct Payment System. Such payments do not attract the disregard that applies to income from agri-environmental schemes but are included as farm income and 70% of such income is assessed as means under the Farm Assist scheme, with 30% disregarded.
I am committed to working with my colleague, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, to keeping this disregard under review in the context of Ireland's CAP Strategic Plan 2023-2027.
I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
405. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Social Protection to list all funding schemes, grant programmes and any other financial supports that are currently administered by his Department and its agencies; the expected launch and closing dates for applications for each scheme in 2026, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66936/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Social Protection provides financial support by means of the provision of income supports to some 1.5 million recipients on a weekly basis. In addition, the Department provides grants to hundreds of bodies and community organisations including through for example, Community Employment (CE) Schemes, Tús (community work placement initiative) and the Rural Social Scheme. These schemes provide support to hundreds of organisations across the country and thousands of participants as key supported employment programmes.
The Department also provides support to a wide range of other initiatives to provide information and awareness of supports to organisations and social welfare recipients.
Examples of supports provided by my Department, which are provided at particular times, are outlined in tabular form below:
|
Details of funding scheme /grant programme / financial support |
Launch date in 2026 |
Closing date in 2026 |
|
The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme provides a once-off payment to eligible families to assist with the costs of clothing and footwear when children start or return to school each autumn. |
2 June 2026 |
30 September 2026 |
|
The Fuel Allowance Scheme for 2026 will be €38 per week for 28 weeks, a total of €1,064. The Fuel Allowance is a means-assessed payment and to qualify, a person must satisfy all the qualifying criteria, including a household composition test. |
September 2026 |
April 2027 |
|
The United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which is observed annually on 17th October. The Department of Social Protection provides funding to community groups to raise awareness of the United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. |
June 2026 |
July/August 2026 |
406. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Social Protection the progress in emission reduction targets in areas that are the responsibility of his Department; which measures are particularly successful and which measures are underperforming; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67056/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Social Protection continues to make strong progress under the Public Service Climate Action Mandate.
By end-2024, the Department has achieved a 50.36% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to the 2016–2018 baseline of approximately 70% for this department. Energy efficiency, which is directly linked to CO2 emissions, has improved by 55% against the 2009 baseline, exceeding the 2030 goal of 50%.
The Department has maintained ISO 50001:2018 accreditation in Energy Management since June 2021, supported by annual audits. This accreditation underpins a structured Energy Management System, which drives behavioural change through local Energy Officers and Green Teams. Initiatives such as Reduce Your Use, delivered under the OPW’s Optimising Power at Work Programme, have been particularly successful.
Progress has also been supported by collaboration with the OPW on energy efficiency and emissions reduction projects, including building retrofits such as the Ennis Intreo Centre. There are further plans for refurbishment at the Department's headquarters of Áras Mhic Dhiarmada and at the Sligo Pensions Services Office over the coming years, with sustainability and a reduced CO2 output of each premises being key outcomes of the respective projects.
The main challenge for the department remains reducing fossil fuel emissions from heating systems. In partnership with the OPW, as building agents, the department will seek to develop any opportunities that arise to replace high-emission systems with cleaner, cost-effective alternatives to sustain and build on current gains.
407. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Social Protection to introduce an emergency winter payment to offset the extra cost of disability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67175/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra408. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Social Protection his plans to introduce a cost of disability payment without further delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67176/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra411. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Social Protection his views on concerns in respect of persons with disabilities (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67181/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 407, 408 and 411 together.
The 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.
That is why the Programme for Government includes a range of commitments to support disabled people. Our Programme for Government commitments will be advanced over the lifetime of the Government, having regard to the overall policy and budgetary context.
Not all of the matters covered in the details supplied relate to my Department. For example, the one-off electricity credits provided over the past few years are a matter for my colleague the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment.
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, my Department's Budget 2026 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;
• The highest ever increases in the Child Support Payment – an increase of €16 to €78 for children aged 12 or over, and of €8 to €58 for children under 12
• 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.
• People getting Disability Allowance or Blind Pension who have children will be eligible for Back to Work Family Dividend when taking up employment and moving off those payments.
• Expansion of the Wage Subsidy Scheme to people who acquire a disability while in employment and to those who transfer from Invalidity Pension to Partial Capacity Benefit, and increasing the rates paid from April.
The Department of Social Protection package also contained measures aimed at supporting carers, and recipients of Domiciliary Care Allowance.
• 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 increase by €375 to €1,000 per week from July 2026.
• €20 increase in the monthly Domiciliary Care Allowance payment bringing the payment to €380 per month from January.
The Government also allocated €3.8 billion to the Department of Children, Disability and Equality for disability services in 2026, including funding for Community Based Specialist Disability Services to ensure people with disabilities receive the right support, at the right time, in the right place. This represents a 20% increase year on year and represents an overall increase since 2020 of €1.8 billion.
The Programme for Government commits to introducing a permanent Annual Cost of Disability Support Payment with a view to incrementally increasing this payment. In addition, under the recently published National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People my Department will lead a Strategic Focus Network on the Cost of Disability. The First Programme Plan of Actions 2025 - 2026 will be published shortly.
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.
My Department provides the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, for those whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents. Under the scheme, the Department may make an ‘additional needs payment’ to meet essential expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to an additional needs payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service.
My Department will publish a social impact assessment of Budget 2026, with distributional analysis of the measures in this Budget.
I trust this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.
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]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe 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.
414. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will review the treatment of compensation payments awarded under historical Northern Ireland criminal injuries schemes, such as the Criminal Injuries (Compensation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1977, where such awards relate specifically to injuries sustained as a result of troubles related violence; and if he will consider extending the income/capital disregard, currently applied to payments under the Troubles permanent disablement payment scheme in S.I. No. 291/2022 and S.I. No. 292/2022 to include such legacy awards in the interests of fairness and parity of treatment for victims; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67209/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraMeans tests and income thresholds are kept under regular review and a number of significant changes have been made in recent years, including as part of the Budget 2026 announcements. In particular, a number of changes to means testing which provide for higher income disregards have been introduced. These disregards ensure that, where people are in receipt of a means-tested payment from my Department, a certain level of income is not assessed in the means test.
Changes to the means tests have been implemented through amendments to the Social Welfare (Consolidated Claims, Payments and Control) Regulations 2007 and the Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 2007.
These changes include disregards to income from the Troubles Permanent Disablement Payment Scheme under, as the Deputy notes, S.I. No. 291 of 2022 and S.I. 292 of 2022, and any payments made by the Northern Ireland Victim and Survivor Service (VSS) in accordance with the Victims and Survivors (Northern Ireland) Order 2006, under S.I. No. 654 of 2018 and S.I. No. 652 of 2018.
Any extension of disregards to other compensation schemes would need to be considered in an overall budgetary and policy context.
415. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 721 of 18 November 2025, if public office holders where their income is solely derived from their role as a member of the Houses of the Oireachtas and they cease to be a member of the Houses of the Oireachtas, the way in which they are expected to be eligible for illness-related or unemployment-related benefit if they have been paying a class K contributions for a period in excess of 12-months (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67216/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs outlined in my reply to parliamentary question number 721 of 18 November 2025, public office holders, including members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, are liable for the PRSI class K rate of 4.2% on their income earned in that capacity. This PRSI class K charge was brought in Budget 2011 as a solidarity measure to contribute to social insurance at a time when extensive curtailment of social insurance entitlements to private sector employees was introduced.
It was never intended that such contributions under PRSI class K would give rise to a right to any benefits available under the Social Insurance Fund as public office holders' terms of employment already protected them against contingencies such as illness, breaks in employment and old age.
Current or former members of the Houses of the Oireachtas seeking information on their entitlement to benefits arising from such contingencies as unemployment, illness or retirement should contact the One Stop Shop Member Services team in the Houses of the Oireachtas.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
416. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Social Protection to review correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67222/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraMaternity Benefit is paid for 26 weeks to employed and self-employed women who are on maternity leave and who satisfy certain Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contribution conditions. To qualify, a person must meet one of the following:
• At least 39 weeks PRSI paid in the 12 months before the first day of maternity leave, or
• At least 39 weeks PRSI paid since first starting work and at least 39 weeks PRSI paid or credited in the relevant tax year or the year following, or
• At least 26 weeks PRSI paid in the relevant tax year and at least 26 weeks PRSI paid in the tax year prior to that.
The Maternity Benefit Section in my Department are available to discuss individual cases and provide guidance on entitlements.
It is important to note that recipients of Jobseekers Benefit, while receiving credits, are not receiving full PRSI contributions.
My Department also operates the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, which provides a safety net for those whose resources are insufficient to meet their needs. This includes a basic weekly payment, supplements for certain expenses, and Additional Needs Payments. The basic payment, subject to a means test, can assist those awaiting a decision on a primary social welfare claim or who do not qualify for other schemes, provided they meet the right to reside and Habitual Residence Condition.
If your constituent believes they may qualify for Supplementary Welfare Allowance, they should contact their local community welfare service or the national contact centre at 0818-607080, or apply online at www.mywelfare.ie.
