Social Protection Committee calls for core social welfare rates to increase by a minimum of €25 per week in Budget 2025

A key focus of the Committee for Budget 2025 is to address the increased cost of living and the removal of anomalies within the means testing system. During its examination of these issues, the Committee placed a public call for submissions and received 21 submissions from interested organisations and individuals, and on that note would like to thank everyone who made a submission to the Committee.

Another key focus of the Committee for Budget 2025 is the increased cost of living and the removal of means testing, alongside general social welfare rates. During its examination of these issues, the Committee placed a public call for submissions and received 21 submissions from interested organisations and individuals, and on that note would like to thank everyone who made a submission to the Committee.

Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Denis Naughten said: “The Joint Committee feel very strongly that a focus needs to be put on the increased cost of living and the removal of means testing anomalies in this year’s Budget.”

"The Committee has made 13 recommendations and is dedicated to ensuring these recommendations are implemented to create positive change for the most vulnerable individuals in society through Budget 2025. The Committee is of the opinion that these recommendations would have a substantial positive effect while not creating extensive added expenditure for the Department of Social Protection.”

“Since January 2020, there has been a 20% rise in inflation, meaning that costs are now one-fifth higher than they were before the pandemic. However, increases in core social protection rates have not kept in line with this rise in inflation. This Budget needs to recognise the continuous pressure of a high cost of living on low- and fixed-income households and restore the purchasing power of payments to 2020 levels on a permanent basis.”

The Committee calls on the government and the Department of Social Protection to ensure that Budget 2025 includes economic, social, and environmental measures to improve the welfare of those in both urban and rural areas.

“We will continue to engage with both the Minister and the Department of Social Protection and continuously seek updates on the implementation of the recommendations set out in this report.”

The recommendations include:
• The Committee recommends that, as promised by Government, a clear indication be given this year that in future all welfare payments will be benchmarked against a minimum essential standard of living (MESL or an equivalent measure). This must include all costs associated with ageing and benchmarked in line with average wages. This must also include secondary welfare payment benefits and supports including the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear allowance and the Working Family Payment.
• The Committee recommends that core rates of social welfare must increase by a minimum of €25 per week in Budget 2025 due to the high levels of inflation.
• The Committee recommends that all income disregards are index linked for 2025 to when they were last increased to reflect changes in social protection rates, Disability Allowance, and the Living Wage/National Minimum Wage.
• The Committee has consistently received evidence of the positive impact, particularly for poorer families, of lump sum payments and believe that the Christmas Bonus and the double payment of child benefit in September should be retained.
• The Committee recommends that cliff edges should be avoided in the social welfare system and that all income should be assessed in means tested schemes at a maximum of 50%.
• The Committee recommends that self-employed and employed income should be treated the same for all means tested schemes.
• The Committee recommends that the Income Disregard for the Carer’s Allowance be increased to €1,000 (couples) and €500 (single carers) in Budget 2025, with a similar increase in Budget 2026 and 2027, to be followed with the full abolition of the Carer’s Allowance means test and a roadmap developed for the delivery of a non-means tested Participation Income for Family Carers by 2030.
• The Committee recommends on foot of the Means Test review being conducted by the Department of Social Protection and the Joint Committee, significant reform of means testing would be implemented.
• The Committee recommends that the rules of the Rural Social Scheme revert to the pre 2012 rules regarding the length of participation on the scheme and means testing.
• The Committee recommends that on completion of participation on a CE scheme, a person should be allowed to go on Tús for 5 years.
• The Committee recommends that outstanding issues in relation to pensions for CE, RSS and TÚS supervisors’ pensions should be resolved.
• The Committee recommends that on the closure of a CE scheme, the Minister should ensure that the supervisors on the scheme would either be redeployed or given redundancy at a rate of 4 weeks per year of service in addition to statutory entitlements.
• The Committee recommends that a new half rate Fuel Allowance for those with an income of €100 above the existing thresholds should be introduced to address the spiralling cost of fuel.

Read the report in full here.

Notes to editor:

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