Skip to main content
Normal View

Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 4 Dec 2002

Vol. 558 No. 5

Written Answers. - Social Welfare Benefits.

David Stanton

Question:

78 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if the Christmas bonus will be given to all those in receipt of short-term social welfare payments including carer's benefit, maternity benefit, health and safety benefit, adoptive benefit, injury benefit, disability benefit, unemployment benefit, short-term unemployment assistance, family income supplement and supplementary welfare allowance. [24731/02]

As the House will be aware, on 7 October I announced that 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 €103.3 million. Payment of the bonus will be made this week and it is estimated that it will benefit some 1.1 million persons comprising some 740,000 recipients and an estimated 400,000 dependants.

The bonus will be paid, as in previous years, to recipients of all long-term social welfare payments, including retirement and old age pensions, widow's and widower's pensions, one-parent family payment, carer's allowance, invalidity pension, disability allowance, long-term unemployment assistance, farm assist and employment support payments.

Recipients of short-term payments do not qualify for the Christmas bonus. This includes persons in receipt of short-term unemployment payments and disability benefit, maternity benefit, carer's benefit, family income supplement and supplementary welfare allowance.
The focus of the Christmas bonus has always been on long-term welfare payment recipients, who rely on the social welfare system for financial support over the long-term. There are no plans to extend entitlement to the bonus payment to the short-term schemes and any such extension could only be considered in a budgetary context having regard to the resources available and the significant cost which would be involved.

Jack Wall

Question:

79 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason for the 18% reduction in funding for the family income supplement as revealed in the Book of Estimates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24708/02]

Family income supplement – FIS – is designed to provide cash support for employees on low earnings with families and thereby preserve the incentive to remain in employment.

The 2003 Abridged, or pre-budget, Estimate for FIS is €42.8 million. This sum provides for an average of 12,000 recipients at current weekly income thresholds. These thresholds were increased by €34 from January this year as part of the current year's budget package.

The reduction of 18% in the 2003 FIS Estimate reflects the fact that the number of recipients in 2002 is lower than had been expected. The 2002 Estimate, to which the 2003 Estimate is compared in the Abridged Estimates volume, provided for an increase of 3,900 recipients in the year.

Despite the increase in income thresholds this year, the extra number of recipients failed to materialise. The number of families in receipt of FIS stood at 11,796 at the end of November 2002. This is very similar to the number at this time last year.

As I stated recently in the House, in response to another parliamentary question, it is very difficult to estimate take-up of FIS. The improvements made to the scheme over the years, together with measures taken to increase awareness of it, resulted in a steady increase in the level of take-up during the 1990s – peaking at 14,686 families at the end of 1999. Since then, although income limits have been increased annually, the numbers in receipt of FIS have declined, reflecting the fact that fewer people now require the supplement. This should be viewed as a positive trend which highlights the success of a range of Government measures which have improved net take-home pay for the low paid.

Top
Share