asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will arrange that old age pensioners and disabled persons who are in receipt of home assistance will be provided with free delivery of fuel.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Free Fuel Deliveries.
29.
Arrangements for the delivery of the fuel under the fuel scheme are not a matter for my Department and there is no provision in the State grant to meet the cost of such a service. Dún Laoghaire Corporation pays for delivery to the homes of recipients in its area and in some areas arrangements exist whereby the fuel is collected at the depots by approved carters and delivered to the homes of recipients for a small charge paid by the recipients. Special arrangements have also been made in the Dublin area for delivery of fuel without charge to disabled persons.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary agree that his reply here is quite different from the attitude he took as a member of the local authority? Will he agree also that what I would call this hardy annual complaint should be dealt with by him as Parliamentary Secretary for Social Welfare?
In regard to the first part of the Deputy's statement, my function as a member of the local authority was to ensure that the local authority accepted fully their responsibilities in the matter. What I have informed the Deputy now is that the Department of Social Welfare as such has no function in this matter. However, I would suggest to the Deputy and to any other Deputy who is interested in the delivery of fuel to these people that they would pursue the matter at the appropriate place, their local authority.
Is it a fact that the Department of Social Welfare provide the money for this scheme, and, therefore, should they not have a say in how it is being administered, whether it be administered by the local authority or transferred by them to the health board, as in the case of the Dublin Corporation and the Eastern Health Board? In the light of that, would the Parliamentary Secretary find out from the health board what constitutes disability; would he agree——
The Deputy is expanding altogether on the subject matter of this question.
Would he agree that an 84 year old person would be disabled from the carrying of turf by his own means?
There is an allocation in my Department's Estimate for the provision of money for free fuel. It does not include the cost of delivery but I would suggest to the Deputy that he take note of the part of my reply which stated that Dún Laoghaire local authority has provided within its own functional area for the delivery of fuel to the recipients.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary consider taking power himself to deal with this problem which has plagued the city of Dublin, in particular, for a long time? I am sure it happens elsewhere also.
I think that in order to have the situation as the Deputy would wish, according to the original question, it would not be necessary for the Minister to take power himself. The local authority has power to deliver as Dún Laoghaire has shown.