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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 5 Jun 1991

Vol. 409 No. 4

Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Social Welfare Dependants' Payments.

Tomás MacGiolla

Question:

13 Tomás Mac Giolla asked the Minister for Social Welfare the reason the income level allowable under the social welfare equality legislation, which allows a husband on social welfare to claim payment in respect of his wife; was not increased this year, his views on whether this figure should be increased in line with inflation; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Arising from the introduction of the principle of equal treatment in matters of social security under EC Directive 79/7, the definition of dependency in the social welfare code had to be revised. Under the revised arrangements, a spouse is not regarded as an adult dependant where he or she is either in receipt of a social welfare payment in his or her own right or has weekly earnings from employment or self-employment in excess of a specified limit. The earnings limit was set at £50 in November 1986. It was increased to £55 with effect from the beginning of June 1990.

Any further increase in the limit would be a matter for consideration in a budgetary context. The question of the limit also arises for consideration in the context of the payment arrangements generally for households of different types. This issue will be considered in the light of the report of the working group on the treatment of households under the social welfare code.

It is quite disturbing that the earning limit was set at £50 in 1986 and increased to £55 in 1990 but that there as no increase in the budget this year. This has effectively deprived dependants, thousands of women in the main, who are earning slightly in excess of £55 per week and were not given the comparable increase in line with the cost of living. The particular case that has been brought to the attention of the Minister concerns a woman who is earning £56.2p a week, a miserable £1.2p over the £55 limit, and who, therefore, loses out substantially. Would the Minister promise to carry out a total review of the income limit and upgrade it at least in accordance with the rate of inflation?

The household review group, who are an expert group, as the Deputy will realise, considered that the £55 limit is inconsistent with the need to treat households with similar needs in a consistent and equitable fashion. The group considered — and this is in the report that is now available — that the income limit should be reduced from £55 to the adult dependant allowance rate, which is £31 but that payment should be made on a tapered rate above that limit, in other words that the figure should be set at £31 but that there should be a tapering payment above that. In the group's view the term "adult dependant" should be replaced by an alternative term, such as qualified partner, and the allowance payable in respect of a cohabiting partner. This has been reviewed as part of an extensive review by the household review group and it is now a matter for discussion. When the Deputy gets the opportunity to read their report he will realise that is the conclusion they came to

Why is it that there are so many categories of social welfare recipients who this very week are getting much less than the average 4 per cent increase that was announced in the budget? Why are so many categories discriminated against?

That is a widening of the question.

I presume the only reason is that the alleviating payments are being phased out. The Deputy will remember that alleviating payments were intended to be in place for a period of one year only. They are now being phased out over a period instead of as intended, as stated by a previous Government, being operated for only one year.

You were the Minister.

Instead of stopping them instantly, as was the decision of the Fine Gael-Labour Government of that time, when I took office——

That was four years ago.

——being a person of very kind disposition I managed to get the Government to agree to a phasing out of these payments over a much longer period.

The Minister is trying to ease out these payments quietly.

There is no increase in respect of them.

The phasing out is to ensure that people will not suffer a reduction. It is done in such a way that they get a small increase. However they get the 4 per cent increase but the phasing out of the alleviation payment affects the amount involved. Perhaps the proposal of the Fine Gael-Labour Coalition Government to eliminate these payments would have been considered better, but that would have reduced people's payments by about £20 per week and then there would have been the question of rent allowances and so on.

The Minister is trying to ease out these payments quietly.

I decided not to do that and, instead, to phase out the payments over a long period.

(Carlow-Kilkenny): Is the Minister saying that it is all right to announce a 4 per cent increase on budget day while deep down he knows it will not be delivered at all?

The continuation of the phasing out of the alleviation payments was mentioned on budget day.

(Carlow-Kilkenny): It was never mentioned.

It was mentioned in my speech at any rate.

It was well buried.

The attitude is not to give these people anything.

It is something very considerate on the part of the Fianna Fáil Government.

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