Vol. 461 No. 6
141 Ms F. Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Social Welfare the consideration, if any, given to extending the free telephone rental scheme to elderly people over 75 years of age irrespective of whether they are residing alone; and whether such an extension has been costed. [3423/96]
A free telephone rental allowance is normally available only to people who are in receipt of certain social welfare type payments and who are either living alone or only with children aged under 15 or persons who are so incapacitated that they could not get help in an emergency.
A number of improvements affecting those 75 years of age or over were introduced in recent years. Persons aged 75 years and over who were getting or who previously had a free telephone rental allowance retained their entitlement to the allowance regardless of who came to reside with them. First time applicants for the allowance, aged 75 and over, may qualify if there is one person residing with them who is not normally an excepted person in the household as outlined above. Furthermore, in last month's budget, I announced that the age limit for dependent children was being increased from 15 to 18 years with effect from next July.
I have no plans at present to extend the free telephone rental allowance to new applicants aged 75 or over where more than one person, other than excepted persons, is residing in the household.
142 Mr. Hughes asked the Minister for Social Welfare the cost of increasing the free fuel allowance from the existing level to £7.50; when the free fuel allowance was last increased; the comparative figures for the actual cost of the various fuels at the time of the last free fuel allowance increase in view of the fact that the cost of a bag of coal is £7.50; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3474/96]
The national fuel scheme assists certain householders who are in receipt of long-term social welfare or health board payments and who are unable to provide for their own heating needs. A payment of £5 per week is paid to eligible households for 26 weeks, from mid-October to mid-April. An additional smokeless fuel allowance of £3 is paid to qualified householders in areas where there is a ban on the sale of bituminous coal.
The fuel allowance was increased from £4 to £5 per week in October 1985. Detailed information on the cost of the various fuel types at that time is not available.
In the five year period from 1989 to 1994 expenditure on the national fuel scheme increased by almost 54 per cent. This year a sum of £44.5 million has been set aside in the Estimates for the scheme. Increasing the fuel allowance from £5 to £7.50 per week would cost an estimated £18.3 million.
Last year I increased the income limit for the national fuel scheme from £5 to £10 per week. In this year's budget I announced a further £5 increase in the income limit which will take effect from October 1996. This means that a person may have a combined household income of £15 per week over the appropriate Irish maximum contributory pension rate or savings/investments of £8,000, and still qualify for the fuel allowance.
