Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 November 2004
473 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason a person (details supplied) in County Monaghan has been refused access to a top-up grant for their child; the further reason the person in question, who has paid taxes and PRSI all their life and receives the same amount as a person on disability allowance, is debarred from this and other benefits; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31303/04]
View answerThe report of the action group on access to third level education made detailed recommendations concerning the introduction of special rates of maintenance grants for disadvantaged students, usually referred to as "top-up" grants. The target group of "those most in need" has been defined in terms of the dependants of people receiving long-term welfare payments where the necessary conditions are fulfilled. The special rates of grant are also available to mature students who meet the prescribed conditions.
In order to qualify for the special rate of maintenance grant a candidate must meet a number of conditions, including the following: he or she must already qualify for one of my Department's ordinary maintenance grants; total reckonable income must not exceed the specified limit for the academic year in question; and on the operative date the income into the household must include one of the specified long-term social welfare payments. The eligible social welfare payment must be classified as a "long-term" welfare payment. The Department of Social and Family Affairs advised that disability benefit is classified as a short-term payment and, therefore, is not included as an eligible payment for the purposes of the special rates of maintenance grant. It is not open to me or to my Department to depart from the terms of the schemes in individual cases.
