Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 2 March 2022
134. Deputy Darren O'Rourke asked the Minister for Social Protection the way her Department determines the number of hours of care that need to be provided for a carer on a full-time basis under the rules for getting the carer's support grant; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [11894/22]
View answerMy Department provides a comprehensive package of carers’ income supports including Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant. Combined spending on these payments to carers in 2022 is estimated to exceed €1.5 billion.
The Carer’s Support Grant is an annual payment of €1,850 for each care recipient paid in a single lump sum with no requirement to satisfy a means test and it is available to all carers providing full-time care to an older person or a person with a disability, regardless of their means or social insurance contributions. This grant is paid automatically to those in receipt of carer income supports. This grant is not available for any other group nor is there an equivalent payment for carers in any other country in Europe. Despite the extra financial demands due to the Covid-19 crisis, in Budget 2021 I increased the Carer’s Support Grant by €150 to its current rate of €1,850. This is the highest rate since its introduction. The estimated spend on this grant in 2022 is over €262 million.
A primary qualifying condition for the Carer’s Support Grant is that the applicant provides full-time care and attention to a person in need of such a level of care. The person being cared for must be so incapacitated as to require full-time care and attention and be likely to require this full-time care and attention for at least 12 months. The full-time care and attention requirement is contained in the respective legislative provisions of the Carer’s schemes.
The main legislative provisions relating to the Carer’s Support Grant are contained in Sections 224 to 226 of Part 5 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, as amended, and associated regulations. Specifically, article 167 of Part 5 of the Social Welfare (Consolidated Claims, Payments and Control) Regulations 2007, S.I. No. 142 of 2007, provides for such matters as the circumstances in which a carer is to be regarded as continuing to provide full-time care and attention. These regulations set a minimum hours condition for which a carer can be regarded as providing full-time care and attention in relation to that person’s eligibility for the Carer’s Support Grant. They stipulate that a carer provides care for not less than 35 hours in a period of 7 consecutive days, and this care is provided on any 5 days, whether consecutive or not, within a period of 7 consecutive days.
While the carer's payments are premised on the provision of full-time care and attention by the carer they do provide good flexibility in terms of allowing carers to engage in training, education or work up to 18.5 hours per week. During this time, adequate provision must be made for the care of the relevant person. This was increased from 15 hours as part of Budget 2020 in response to requests from carer's organisations and carers themselves who found the 15 hours too restrictive. The 18.5 hour limitation represents a reasonable balance between meeting the requirement for providing full-time care for the care recipient and the needs of the carer to engage in employment or education, thereby supporting a carer’s continued attachment to the workforce and broader social inclusion.
Any changes to the eligibility conditions for any of the statutory schemes operated by my Department, including the Carer’s Support Grant, would require legislative change and would need to be addressed in an overall policy and budgetary context.
I trust that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
