Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 4 May 2022
297. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will ensure that in cases in which a foster carer remains on the Tusla panel of approved foster carers and remains available for receiving a child into foster care that they continue to be included for State pension (contributory) purposes for the entire period of being on the approved panel; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21743/22]
View answerMatters related to foster caring are the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and Tusla. This response covers State Pension provision for carers.
Subject to the standard qualifying conditions for State Pension (Contributory) also being satisfied, the State Pension system already provides significant recognition to those whose work history includes an extended period of time outside the paid workplace, often to raise families or in a full-time caring role. This is provided through the award of PRSI credits and/or the application of the Homemaker’s Scheme (under the Yearly Average method for payment calculation) and/or the application of HomeCaring Periods (under the Interim Total Contributions approach also known as the Aggregated Contribution Method).
HomeCaring Periods may be awarded for each week not already covered by a paid or credited social insurance contribution (regardless of when they occurred) to a maximum of 20 years. Only one person can benefit from a HomeCaring Period for supporting a child or adult at one time. Foster carers are entitled to the benefits of HomeCaring Periods on the same basis as other carers and will qualify if the foster carer is in receipt of Child Benefit. If the foster carer is not in receipt of Child Benefit, s/he can still qualify for HomeCaring Periods provided the caring periods are confirmed by Tusla.
Since April 2019, all new State Pension (Contributory) applications are assessed under all possible rate calculation methods, including the Yearly Average and the Interim Total Contributions Approach, with the most beneficial rate paid to the pensioner. The elements which make up each method are set out in legislation.
It should be noted that if a person does not satisfy the conditionality to qualify for State Pension (Contributory), s/he may qualify for the means-tested State Pension (Non-Contributory), the maximum rate of which is over 95% that of the maximum rate of the State Pension (Contributory). Alternatively, if his/her spouse is a State pensioner and has significant household means, his/her most beneficial payment may be an Increase for a Qualified Adult, based on his/her personal means, and amounting to up to 90% of a full contributory pension.
This Government acknowledges the important role that carers play and is fully committed to supporting them in that role. The Programme for Government “Our Shared Future” includes a commitment to examine options for a pension solution for carers, the majority of whom are women, particularly those of incapacitated children, in recognition of the enormous value of the work carried out by them.
The Pensions Commission was established in November 2020 to examine the sustainability of the State Pension system and the Social Insurance Fund. The Commission’s Report was published on 7th October 2021 and it set out a wide-range of recommendations, including enhanced pension provision for long-term carers. It recommended that long-term carers (defined as caring for more than 20 years) should be given access to the State Pension (Contributory) by having retrospective contributions paid for them by the Exchequer for any gaps in their contribution history arising from that caring. The Commission also recommended that relevant Departments should examine, in conjunction with relevant stakeholders, options for the creation of a statutory "Family Carer Register" which could, in time, facilitate the identification of long-term carers for State Pension (Contributory) purposes as well as assisting in the planning and delivery of services for family carers.
In the interests both of older people and future generations of older people, the Government intends to consider the comprehensive and far reaching recommendations in the Pensions Commission’s Report very carefully and holistically. In this regard, I intend bringing a recommended response and implementation plan to Government in the coming weeks.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
