Michael Bell
Question:169 Mr. Bell asked the Minister for Social Welfare if people in receipt of disability benefit book payments will be paid the Christmas bonus in 1994. [320/94]
Written Answers. - Christmas Bonus.
Payment of a Christmas bonus this year of 70 per cent of normal weekly payments has been approved by the Government. There will be a minimum payment of £20 and in all over 1.2 million people will benefit — 733,000 recipients and their 488,000 dependants — at an estimated cost of £37.4 million.
In line with previous years, the Christmas bonus will be paid to pensioners and other people receiving long term social welfare and health payments including the elderly, widows, lone parents, the long term unemployed, and people in receipt of carer's allowance from my Department and disabled person's maintenance allowance from the health boards. This year, for the first time, participants in community employment will also receive the bonus payment where they had entitlement prior to joining the scheme.
The Christmas bonus was introduced originally in 1980 for elderly and other pensioners. It was subsequently extended to include the long term unemployed in receipt of long term unemployment assistance. People in receipt of invalidity pension are also covered for the bonus. Any further extension of the Christmas bonus to other categories of recipients would have to be considered in a budgetary context.