The Commission on Social Welfare (CSW) recommended that all personal rates of social welfare payment should be increased to a minimum adequate level — £50 in 1985 terms, £70.10 in 1998 terms.
The following table sets out the various increased payment rates, which were announced in the 1998 budget, as a percentage of the CSW's minimum recommended rate. As will be seen, all weekly social welfare payment rates, with the exception of two, will be above the CSW's recommended rate, ranging between 101 per cent and 118 per cent. This means that approximately 833,000 recipients, 94 per cent, will be in receipt of weekly payments which will be above the CSW's recommended rate. The two payments which will not have reached the CSW's recommended rate are short-term unemployment assistance and supplementary welfare allowance, which will move to £68.40 (98 per cent of the CSW's recommended rate). These payments account for some 57,000 recipients (6 per cent). The full year cost of increasing these rates by £1.70 to £70.10, i.e. the minimum level recommended by the CSW, is approximately £5 million.
As the Deputy will know, the Government is committed to fulfilling the terms of Partnership 2000, which provides, inter alia, that the minimum rates recommended by the CSW will be implemented before the end of the partnership (1999).
Social Welfare Rates as a percentage of CSW Main Rate.