Vol. 520 No. 1
30 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if it is his intention to introduce a special islander allowance for social welfare recipients whose permanent place of residence is on offshore islands; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15169/00]
The possibility of introducing a special island allowance for social welfare claimants whose permanent place of residence is on an offshore island has been raised with me on a number of occasions and in particular by my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Ó Cuív.
The implications of introducing such a measure would need to be examined carefully, and this will be explored by my Department in the coming months. There are a number of potential difficulties with such a scheme, including: the appropriateness of having different rates of welfare payments depending on the claimant's place of permanent residence; having regard to requirement to treat all welfare claimants in an equitable manner, while it can be argued that islanders live in particularly isolated circumstances, with associated costs in terms of travel, access to goods at cheaper prices and so on, the same is true of other parts of rural Ireland; the potential employment disincentive impact of such an allowance; and the costs involved.
In addition, any examination would need to take account of issues such as whether such an allowance would be payable to all welfare claimants or confined to claimants of social welfare pensions, and the manner in which increases in respect of qualified adults and dependent children would be treated.
Is the Minister suggesting this issue is being seriously examined by him and his Department? He speaks in the present and in the future as if there will be a detailed examination of a new idea. Is the Minister not aware that in a Fianna Fáil policy document more than three years ago, this suggestion was made when it was pointed out there were extra costs for those living on the islands and because of that "Fianna Fáil will introduce the special islander allowance".
It is not in order to quote on Question Time.
I am referring to it rather than quoting from it. There is some interesting material in the said policy document. Is the Minister unaware of that three-year-old promise and, if so, why has it taken three years to realise that something needs to be done? Is he seriously asking the people to believe he will do anything about it at this stage?
I am well aware of that commitment. The Minister of State, Deputy Ó Cuív, has had discussions with me on a number of occasions about this issue. It is one to which I am not averse but there are difficulties which I have already explained. There are a number of pros and cons. Ultimately it may be an issue which would be properly addressed by the Minister from that Department rather than from my Department. There are issues of equity, whether such a payment would have disincentives to employment and there are fairly difficult administrative issues involved in bringing it forward. However there are also a number of pros. It is a commitment which was made in one of the election manifestos of my party. Ultimately, my responsibility is in relation to the commitments made in the programme for government. I have to deliver on those first.
Will the Minister explain, or is it the usual Fianna Fáil guff before elections, how this commitment was made without any equivocation, without any conditions and why there are all these problems three years later which the Minister is now going to explore and address? Will he explain why he is giving the impression that his colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Ó Cuív, is pushing him to explore these issues so that he can come to a decision, when three months ago, on 1 February, the same Minister of State, Deputy Ó Cuív, told me he did not intend to pursue the matter any further at this stage because he did not think it practical or feasible? Is the Minister misleading the House?
Did the Minister speak to him at all?
I have spoken with him on a number of occasions on this issue. It is a issue on which I would like to deliver but there are difficulties. This is the reason it has not been brought forward earlier.
What has happened since 1 February?
The issue is on our agenda but ultimately it may have to be delivered by the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands.
The Minister might cod the people but he will not cod me.
