My key area of concern is the impact of Brexit on those current reciprocal arrangements for social insurance payments (which include contributory pensions); social assistance payments (means tested schemes linked to residency rights) and child benefit between Ireland and the UK, including Northern Ireland.
The Convention on Social Security which the Government entered into with the UK Government earlier this year maintains the status quo with respect to these payments for Irish and British citizens moving within the Common Travel Area. The Convention will be brought into effect immediately in the event of there being no Brexit deal or at the end of the transition period in the event of a deal.
The UK’s Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) is a Department of Work & Pensions payment which is not currently paid on a reciprocal basis. Furthermore, I am advised that there has been no indication that the UK has any plans to make changes with regard to WFP recipients in Ireland, whether or not there is a Brexit deal.
With regard to our own fuel allowance, just this week, in Budget 2020, I increased the rate of payment by €2 per week to €24.50 per week from January. Some 370,000 households are set to benefit from this measure which sees the total fuel season payment increase from €630 to €686 per year at a cost of €21 million.