I propose to take Questions Nos. 1550, 1551 and 1552 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.
My officials have held meetings with a number of organisations to discuss the possible structure and content of the Strategic Focus Network on the Cost of Disability. In December, my officials met with a number of organisations at my Department's Disability Consultative Forum, at which the Cost of Disability Strategic Focus Network was the main Agenda item. Officials from across government were also in attendance given that this is a whole of Government issue.
Government has been very clear that there would be no once-off measures in Budget 2026. We are at the start of a five-year programme for Government and not everything can be done in year one.
In Budget 2026, I provided for a €1.15 billion package of new social protection measures. This contained significant targeted measures to support disabled people, including:
• A €10 increase in the weekly rates of payment, bringing the personal rates of payment to €254 per week from this month.
• A Christmas bonus double payment to all persons getting a long-term disability payment, 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 from this month.
• A €5 increase in the Fuel Allowance, bring it to €38 per week from this month.
• 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 this month.
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.
These measures clearly demonstrate the Government’s commitment to support disabled people by introducing permanent changes rather than relying on once-off measures.
Not all of the one-off measures in previous Budgets fall within my Department's remit. The one-off electricity credits are a matter for my colleague the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment.
The impact of Budget measures, whether one-off or permanent varies depending on people's circumstances. For example, whether or not they are in receipt of the Fuel Allowance and whether or not they have children.
As part of Budget 2026, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation in conjunction with the Department of Finance undertook analysis of the distributional impact of the Budget 2026 tax and welfare measures. This analysis shows the impact of the Budget 2026 tax and welfare package to be broadly progressive, reflecting its targeted nature. Households in the lowest income deciles will see the greatest increases in weekly disposable income as a result.
In addition, the "Beyond GDP – Quality of Life Assessment Reports" prepared by the Department of Finance show that after accounting for the Budget 2026 measures, the at-risk-of-poverty rate for the whole population falls in both 2025 and 2026 with the largest reductions for older people and the population affected by disability.
I trust this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.
