Is gnáthach trí Meastacháin an Roinn Leasa Shóisialaigh a ghlacadh le chéile. Ba mhaith liom, mar sin, i gcead duitse, a Cheann Comhairle, agus do'n Dáil, na trí Meastacháin a phlé d'aon iarracht an babhta so freisin. Ba mhaith liom, ina theannta san, i gcead do'n Cheann Comhairle agus do'n Dáil, Tairiscint an Teachta Mac Feorais "Go gcuirtear An tOrdú Um Chúnamh Difhostaíochta (Tréimhse Fhostaíochta), Míle, Naoi gCéad, Caoga a Naoi, ar cheal", a phlé i n-éineacht leis na Meastacháin.
Mar sin de, tabharfaidh an ráiteas a dhéanfaidh mé léargas ar na trí Meastacháin, mar atá, Uimhir 61— Oifig an Aire Leasa Shóisialaigh; Uimhir 62—Árachas Sóisialach; Uimhir 63—Cúnamh Soisialach, agus ar Thairiscint an Teachta Mac Feorais. Tigh le Teachtaí aon nídh a bhaineann le h-aon cheann de's na Bhótaí nó leis an dTairiscint a phlé le linn na díospóireachta.
'Siad na suimeanna airgid atá dá n-iarraidh i leith na trí Meastacháin mar a foillsíodh iad, ná: Bhóta 61— Oifig an Aire Leasa Shóisialaigh: £481,600; Bhóta 62—Árachas Sóisialach: £4,372,000; Bhóta 63—Cúnamh Sóisialach: £20,481,000.
'Sé iomlán na dtrí Meastachán £25,334,600. Tabharfaidh na Teachtaí fá ndeara gurab ionann san agus 25 fá'n gcéad de'n tsuim airgid iomláin atá dá soláthar dos na Seirbhísí Phoiblí, gan Seirbhísí Capital d'áireamh, i gcomhartha an-dúil an Rialtais seo i leas na mBocht.
Do b'é £25,473,800 iomlán an tsoláthair a deineadh don bhliain airgeadais 1958-59 agus Bhóta Breise de £177,000 do Árachas Sóisialach d'áireamh, mar aon le £14,000 as an Oll-Bhóta a tógadh anuraidh chun breiseanna páighe d'íoc le Stát-Sheirbhísigh agus dreamanna áirithe eile. Mar sin de, nuair a cuirtear na Meastacháin don dá bliain i gcomparáid le chéile, chítear gur lugha Meastacháin an Roinn Leasa Shóisialaigh don bhliain 1959-60 de £139,200 ná iomlán na suimeanna airgid a deónadh anuraidh.
Ní mór dhom a rá, áfach, nach náirím ins an gcomórtas so costas na mbreisithe i gcúnamh sóisialach a d'fhógair an tAire Airgeadais le gairid ins an ráiteas a thug sé fá'n mBudget. Fé mar a dúirt an tAire Airgeadais, meastar go gcosnóchaidh na breisithe seo £883,000 ins an mbliain airgeadais seo. Léigheadh an Bille lena gcur i bhfeidhm do'n chéad uair cheana féin agus tá sé i lámhaibh na dTeachtaí. Nuair achtuítear é, má achtuítear, cuirfear Meastachán Breise fé bráid na Dála chun an airgid bhreise sin a chur ar fáil. Nuair a cuirfear an tsuim bhreise de £883,000 i leith na bliana airgeadais seo leis na Meastacháin atá i Leabhar na Meastachán do'n bhliain airgeadais 1959-60 do'n Roinn Leasa Chóisialaigh cheana féin, chífear gur mó de £¾ milliúin na trí Meastacháin do'n bhliain airgeadais sin ná iomlán na suimeanna a vótáladh don bhliain airgeadais 1958-59. Tabharfaidh mé cuntas anois ar na trí Meastacháin as a chéile.
The Estimate for the Office of the Minister for Social Welfare shows a net decrease of £3,200. There is an increase of £26,000 in the provision under Subhead A of the Vote as compared with the previous year. This is due to increases in remuneration following from or arising out of certain agreements reached under conciliation and arbitration machinery for which no provision had been made in the previous year's Vote.
Deputies' attention is particularly drawn to the fact that the increase in the Subhead for 1959-60 would have been much higher but for savings resulting from the suppression of a net total of 37 posts in furtherance of the Department's policy of securing economy in administration costs.
The provision for Telegrams, Telephones, Postal Expenses etc. under Subhead D is £20,000 higher than the corresponding provision in 1958-59. The increase arises wholly on postal expenses in connection with social insurance and is mainly the result of a revised apportionment between the Social Insurance Fund and voted moneys of the Department's expenses on postage. Postal expenses arising from the Social Insurance Scheme are borne by the Social Insurance Fund while the other postal services for the Department of Social Welfare are provided by the Department of Posts and Telegraphs without charge in the normal way. The Social Insurance postal expenses provided for in Subhead D are met from this Vote in the first instance but are recoverable in full from the Social Insurance Fund. Consequently, the net sum being provided in the Estimate for this Vote is not affected by the fact that an extra £20,000 is required for these expenses in 1959-60.
All the expenses incurred by the Department in administering the scheme of social insurance are repayable by the Social Insurance Fund and are brought to credit of this Vote as appropriations in aid. The estimated total receipts from the Fund are £36,000 higher than the corresponding provision for the previous year. The increase is due partly to the extra provision for postal expenses which I have just explained and partly to the social insurance scheme's share of the increases in remuneration already mentioned.
The Estimate of £4,372,000 for Social Insurance for 1959-60 is £56,000 less than the Vote for 1958-59 when the Supplementary Estimate of £177,000 in 1958-59 is taken into account. The increase of £121,000 shown in the Estimate Volume is not now correct; the volume was printed before the Supplementary Estimate was passed.
The decrease of £56,000, as compared with the previous year, occurs on Subhead A of the Vote and is the result of certain adjustments which were made in the amount of the Exchequer contribution to the Social Insurance Fund in 1958-59 and which do not arise in the estimate for 1959-60. I shall refer briefly to those adjustments later on.
As the House is aware, the difference between the expenditure and income of the Social Insurance Fund in each year is made good by the Exchequer, in accordance with the provisions of Section 39 (9) of the Social Welfare Act, 1952. The sum so required to balance the Fund's expenditure and income, after allowing for any necessary adjustments—for example, in respect of prior years—is provided in Subhead A of this Vote.
It so happens that the excess of the expenditure of the Fund over its income in 1959-60, as now estimated, is exactly the same as the excess provided for in 1958-59 (as revised by the Supplementary Estimate for that year). This occurs despite some variations, which I shall mention later, in the figures making up the estimated excesses in the two years.
The estimated expenditure of the Fund for 1959-60 is £10,807,000, an increase of £117,000 on the provision for 1958-59. On the income side it is expected that £6,473,000 will come to hand during 1959-60. The increase which this last figure represents over the estimated income for 1958-59 is also £117,000.
The Fund expenditure of £10,807,000 is made up as follows:—
|
£
|
Disability Benefit
|
3,996,000
|
Unemployment Benefit
|
3,110,000
|
Widows' and Orphans' Contributory Pensions
|
1,997,000
|
Treatment Benefit
|
230,000
|
Maternity Benefits
|
120,000
|
Marriage Grant
|
76,000
|
Administration Costs and Depreciation
|
1,278,000
|
|
£10,807,000
|
The income of the Fund for 1959-60 is estimated at £6,473,000. It consists of £5,900,000 from employment contributions and £573,000 in income from investments of the Fund.
The difference between the estimated expenditure of £10,807,000 and the income of £6,473,000, that is £4,334,000, is the sum to be provided by the Exchequer under Section 39 of the Social Welfare Act, 1952, to make good the deficit on the working of the Social Insurance Fund in 1959-60.
As I have already remarked, the estimated excess of expenditure over income of the Fund, in 1959-60, namely, £4,334,000, is the same as that estimated for 1958-59. The amount provided in Subhead A of the Estimate for 1959-60 is, nevertheless, £56,000 less than the provision for 1958-59. The explanation of the decrease is that the Supplementary Estimate for 1958-59 provided for two adjustments— firstly, a sum of £44,000 to adjust an underdraw from the Exchequer in 1957-58, and secondly, a sum of £12,000 in final discharge of State grant payable under the former National Health Insurance Scheme.
There are variations, as compared with provisions for the previous year, in some of the items of expenditure and income of the Fund for 1959-60.
The provision for disability benefit is £37,000 higher than in the previous year. In this connection it is estimated that disability benefit for the extra persons in insurance resulting from the raising last December of the remuneration limit for compulsory insurance from £600 to £800 per annum will cost about £40,000 more in 1959-60 than in 1958-59.
Small increases, totalling £10,000 in all, are provided for in the estimates for Maternity Benefits and Marriage Grant.
There is an increase of £74,000 in the provision for Widows' and Orphans' (Contributory) Pensions. The normal trend in this service is for the numbers of contributory pensions to increase from year to year.
Administration costs incurred by the various Departments in connection with the scheme of social insurance which are borne by the Social Insurance Fund will, it is estimated, be approximately £30,000 higher than the estimate for the previous year. The increase, which occurs principally in the Department of Social Welfare, is mainly due to the Civil Service pay increases and the higher charges against the Fund for postal expenses which I adverted to earlier.
As regards unemployment benefit it is expected that the position in 1959-60 will continue to improve; the sum provided for 1959-60 is £34,000 less than the provision for the previous year.
On the income side of the Social Insurance Fund, the only variation of consequence is in the expected income from employment contributions, which is put at £5,900,000, an increase of £116,000 on the estimate for 1958-59. This increase is largely attributable to the raising of the insurance remuneration limit to £800 per annum at the end of December last.
The net Estimate for Social Assistance—£20,481,000—is £80,000 lower than the Vote for the previous year.
The provision of £7,126,000 for Children's Allowances is £31,000 higher than the estimate for 1958-59. The increase is based on the rising expenditure experience in recent years and is due to an upward trend in the number of children in respect of whom allowances are payable.
On the other hand, there is a reduction of £97,000 in the provision for Widows' and Orphans' Non-Contributory Pensions. This reflects the normal downward trend in expenditure on this service. I should perhaps point out again that the trend of expenditure on the corresponding contributory scheme is upward.
There are small decreases on other subheads amounting to £2,000 in all. The principal one is a reduction of £1,500 in the estimate for Grants under the Education (Provision of Meals) Acts, resulting largely from economies in administration by the local authorities providing the meals.
The variations I have mentioned add up to a net decrease of £68,000. The balance of the £80,000 decrease shown by the total net Estimate for Social Assistance is accounted for by expected increases totalling £12,000 in Appropriations in Aid.
The provisions in the remaining five Subheads of the Vote for Social Assistance show no variation. These Subheads are A, C, F, H and I, covering Old Age Pensions, Unemployment Assistance, Gaeltacht School Meals and the Fuel and Footwear Schemes respectively.
The following motion, in the name of Deputy Corish, stood on the Order Paper:—
That the Unemployment Assistance (Employment Period) Order, 1959 (S.I. No. 38 of 1959) be and is hereby annulled.