Vol. 524 No. 5
395 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will continue payment of unemployment assistance to a person (details supplied) in Dublin 10 for an extra number of weeks until he finds employment. [22922/00]
The person concerned was in receipt of unemployment assistance from 30 March 1993 to 16 May 2000. In March 2000 his entitlement to unemployment assistance was reviewed in the context of the employment action plan. He declined all offers of help from FÁS, including training and a place on a community employment scheme.
He was subsequently interviewed in the local office by a deciding officer. The deciding officer was not satisfied that he was seeking employment or willing to making himself available for training. Payment was disallowed with effect from 17 May 2000 and this decision was upheld by an appeals officer on 27 September 2000. The appeals officer's decision is final in the absence of new facts or fresh evidence.
Under social welfare legislation decisions in regard to claims are made by deciding officers and appeals officers who are statutorily appointed and I have no role in relation to the making of such decisions.
396 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the number of recipients of non-contributory old age pension. [23087/00]
The number of recipients of old age non-contributory pension at the end of September 2000 was 91,013.
397 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the cost of increasing child benefit to £25 per week for the first two children and £29 per week for further children, for children aged up to five years and up to ten years respectively. [23089/00]
It is estimated that an increase in child benefit to £25 per week for the first two children and £29 per week for subsequent children, for children aged up to five years, would cost an additional £252 million in a full year. Application of these increases to Child Benefit payments, for children aged up to ten years, would cost a further £218 million approximately in a full year.
398 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the cost of extending free schemes to widows under 66 years who have dependent children. [23091/00]
404 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will award the free travel pass and the Christmas bonus to those in receipt of disability benefit now that resources are available. [23114/00]
405 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the reason people on disability benefit do not get the free travel pass or the Christmas bonus, particularly those who have been in receipt of the payment for some time. [23115/00]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 398, 404 and 405 together.
The free schemes are available to people aged 66 or over, people with disabilities and carers who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments and who are either living alone, or who otherwise satisfy the living alone condition. In addition, widows and widowers between the ages of 60 and 65 whose late spouses had entitlement to the free schemes retain that entitlement, to ensure that households do not suffer a loss of entitlements following the death of a spouse.
The review of the free schemes, which was published by the Policy Institute, Trinity College, Dublin in April this year, noted that the free schemes share a common set of objectives in the area of social inclusion. These are defined as: to provide assistance for those living alone by targeting them with specific benefits providing both income and social inclusion gains; to support older people and people with disabilities in their wish to remain in the community as opposed to institutional care; and to support Government policy which seeks to acknowledge the value of older people in society.
The review of the free schemes examined the many demands to extend the free schemes to other groups, including widows and widowers, using the above objectives as the criteria for decision. In this regard, it was noted that widow-widowers under 66 years may experience social exclusion but they are not groups in need of community care support nor do they experience the same physical risks of isolation as older people and people with disabilities.
The estimated cost of extending the free schemes to widows under 66 years with dependent children would be in the region of £5 million annually. However, it must be noted that such an extension would increase demands to extend the schemes to other groups with similar income needs, such as lone parents and the long-term unemployed.
The review considered that the schemes as currently constituted provide a basic package that ensures a limited standard of comfort or well-being to a particular targeted group, that is based on age or disability. The review noted that, where payment levels are adequate, any extension of the free schemes must be based solely on increased social benefits that are over and above those which can be purchased by increased income. Accordingly, the review concluded that the schemes should not be extended further to additional groups of people or to include other types of schemes. Overall the proposals in the review are being examined in the context of future budgets and available resources.
