Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 23 September 2020
134. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the amount paid out annually in rent allowance in 2019 and to date in 2020; and the projected amount for the remainder of 2020 and 2021. [25688/20]
View answerRent Supplement expenditure in 2019 was €125.2m.
At the end of August 2020, expenditure on Rent Supplement was €86.4m.
The 2020 Revised Estimates passed by the Dáil on 28th May 2020 provided an allocation of €164.6m. The estimate was based on projections for additional recipients in 2020 as a result of the COVID 19 public health emergency. It is expected that the outturn will be lower than the estimate due to lower number of recipients than provided for but this has yet to be finalised and trends in recipient numbers will continue to be monitored in the coming months.
The 2021 estimate for Rent Supplement has not yet been determined. The Department has been closely monitoring trends over the past few months and will continue to do so over the coming weeks to inform the estimate for 2021. An estimate will be agreed with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for inclusion in the Budget 2021 estimates in October.
