I propose to take Questions Nos. 420 and 423 together.
As announced last week, the Christmas bonus for 2002 will again be paid at a rate equivalent to 100% of the person's normal weekly payment, but with an increased minimum payment of €30. The cost of this measure is estimated to be €109.9 million. Payment will be made in early December and it is estimated that it will benefit some 1.2 million persons comprising some 800,000 recipients and an estimated 400,000 dependants. The bonus will be paid to recipients of long-term payments including: disablement pension, death benefit by way of pension, old age contributory and non-contributory pensions, retirement pension, invalidity pension, widow's and widower's non-contributory ension, widow's and widower's contributory pension, orphan's contributory and non-contributory pensions, pre-retirement allowance, blind pension, carer's allowance, one-parent family payment, payments to people formerly in receipt of deserted wife's benefit and allowance and prisoner's wife's allowance, unemployment assistance at the long-term rate, farm assist and disability allowance.
Recipients of short-term payments will not receive the Christmas bonus. The payments involved are: carer's benefit, maternity benefit, health and safety benefit, adoptive benefit, injury benefit, disability benefit, unemployment benefit, short-term unemployment assistance, family income supplement, supplementary welfare allowance.
An estimated 190,000 people receive these weekly payments. The focus of the Christmas bonus has always been on long-term welfare payment recipients who rely on this system for financial support over the long-term. There are no plans to extend the bonus payment to the short-term schemes this year.
