Vol. 436 No. 2
78 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Welfare whether he intends to extend availability of free telephone allowance to any categories currently ineligible due to the fact that they reside with others who do not qualify; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The free telephone allowance scheme applies to people in receipt of social welfare or certain other pensions who are aged 66 or over and to incapacitated people under 66 who are in receipt of a pension or allowance for long term incapacity. The scheme was intended for people who might otherwise be unable to summon help in an emergency. To qualify for this allowance the person concerned must be living alone or only with children under 15 years or with people who would be unable to summon help in an emergency.
Any extension of the scheme would have financial implications and would have to be considered in a budgetary context.
