Vol. 428 No. 3
31 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Social Welfare if his attention has been drawn to the fact that many part-time women workers who are on maternity leave are effectively getting no maternity benefit because the amount of their benefit is deducted from their husband's social welfare payments; the plans, if any, he has to deal with this anomaly; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
As a result of the extension of full social insurance cover to part-time workers in April 1991, many women are now becoming eligible for maternity benefit for the first time.
The maternity benefit scheme pays women in current employment 70 per cent of their gross income in the relevant tax year, subject to a minimum weekly payment of £60 per week and a maximum of £154. The Social Welfare Bill currently before the House provides for both the minimum and the maximum rate to be increased to £65 and £159 respectively.
A husband on social welfare payments can receive an increase for his wife as his dependant even if she is working, provided she is earning £55 or less per week. He can also qualify for full child dependant increases. However, if a person who is an adult dependant on her spouse's social welfare payment is awarded a payment in her own right, in this case a maternity benefit payment, she ceases to be an adult dependant and consequently, the spouse is not entitled to claim an adult dependant allowance and the child dependant allowances are payable only at half rate. Because of this, some part time workers earning less than £55 per week, with spouses on social welfare, can find that they are better off remaining as adult dependants on their husband's payment than claiming their own maternity benefit payment of £60 per week.
This arises from the general provision in relation to overlapping social welfare payments in that an adult dependant allowance is not payable in respect of a person who is in receipt of a social welfare payment in their own right. Where however the individual payment is less than that of the adult dependant payment the claimant may choose to opt for the higher amount.
33 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of claims for carer's allowances made in 1992; and the number of applications allowed.
In 1992, 2,816 applications for the carer's allowance were received in my Department and 1,380 allowances were awarded, bringing the current number of carers allowances in payment to some 4,500.
35 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will regularise the issuing of pensions to people on the death of a spouse and furthermore if he will expedite the issuing of these pensions; and if he will ensure that provision is made to backdate these pensions to the time when the spouse has died.
The main forms of social welfare support for spouses of deceased persons are the widow's contributory and non-contributory pension schemes and lone parent's allowance. In addition, there are arrangements whereby a person may receive payment of their deceased spouse's pension or certain other payments for a period of six weeks after the death has occurred. This arises mainly where the person was the adult dependent of the deceased spouse. In these circumstances, widow's pension or lone parent's allowance is payable to the surviving spouse from the start of the seventh week after the pensioner's death.
A woman whose husband has died may be eligible for a widow's contributory pension based on either her own or her late husband's insurance contributions. Alternatively she may be entitled to a means tested widow's non-contributory pension. In the case of a bereaved man or woman with dependent children, a lone parent's allowance may be payable.
My Department is conscious of the trauma and distress which people suffer on the death of their spouse. For this reason, every effort is made to ensure that claims from surviving spouses are processed quickly so that their social welfare entitlements may be awarded with the minimum of delay.
