Nora Owen
Question:99 Mrs. Owen asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will consider changes in the means test for carer's allowance and ease the rules to qualify for the allowance. [6048/98]
Written Answers - Means Tests.
The carer's allowance is a social assistance scheme which provides an income maintenance payment to people, who are providing elderly or incapacitated pensioners or certain persons with disabilities with full-time care and attention, and whose incomes fall below certain limits. At the end of last December 10,330 people were in receipt of a carer's allowance at a cost of over £36 million in 1997.
Since its introduction in 1990, the allowance has been improved and expanded progressively over the years. As announced in the budget, the weekly personal rate of the carer's allowance is being increased from next June by £5, from £70,50 to £75.50 for those over the age of 66, and £3 for carers under 66 from £70.50 to £73.50.
In addition, the budget also provided for three additional improvements for carers. The first two of these are of a more technical nature and benefit a small number of people viz. a disregard of non-national disability pensions up to the maximum level of the old age contributory pension in assessing means and the payment of carer's allowance for six weeks after death to carers whose spouse was not in receipt of a social welfare payment. The third improvement is the provision of a free travel pass to all those in receipt of carer's allowance in their own right, which potentially could be of benefit to all carers.
I recently reviewed the operation of the condition whereby the carer is required to provide the care-recipient with full-time care and attention and have decided to adopt a more flexible approach. Carers may now attend educational or training courses or participate in voluntary or community based activities for around ten hours per week provided the carer makes adequate provision for the care-recipient in his-her absence. These new arrangements come into effect immediately.
In its "Action Programme for the Millennium" the Government is committed to:
— progressively relaxing the qualifying criteria for the carer's allowance to ensure that more carers can get the benefit; and
— increasing the value of the allowance in real terms.
In line with these commitments, an overall review of the carer's allowance is being carried out within my Department. This review is considering the purpose and development of the scheme, both in terms of its current operation and its future development. It will also examine the potential for the development of provision for carers through the social insurance system and the role of the private sector. The review is expected to be completed by the middle of this year and it will be published. Any changes in the scheme, such as a relaxation of the means testing arrangements, would have to be considered in a budgetary context.