Mary Flaherty
Ceist:2 Miss Flaherty asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will make a statement on the response to the new carer's allowance.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Carer's Allowance.
The new carer's scheme, which was launched at the beginning of this month, is a very important and historic development in provision under the social welfare system. Traditionally, social welfare payments have been made to compensate a household because of unemployment, illness or the death of a breadwinner. The introduction of this new allowance formally recognises the work that carers are doing in our society.
Since the scheme was introduced in the first week of November 1990 there has been a steady intake of claims. Up to 19 November 2,412 application forms have been received and are being processed. An average of 150 claims per day are being received. A total of 293 persons have been awarded the new allowance to date.
Has the Minister any figure for those turned down to date?
It is too early yet to give a figure given that the scheme has only been in operation for two weeks and applications are still being received. The number of cases which have been rejected to date is 160. Ninety per cent of these were rejected because the person concerned was either in receipt of disabled person's maintenance allowance and did not come within the scheme as constituted or that the carer was financially better off on an existing benefit.
Will the Minister say why he has broken a commitment given in this House to include persons in receipt of disabled person's maintenance allowance?
The Deputy is raising a separate matter.
As the Deputy is aware, I have been given a considerable amount of money — £10 million — to get the scheme off the ground. What the Deputy is referring to is the fact that in discussing the legislation — Deputy Ferris will remember this — I included a provision which will allow me at some future date without the need to introduce further legislation to extend the scheme to recipients of disabled person's maintenance allowance. I explained that this would depend on the finances available to me. Extending the scheme to cover recipients of disabled person's maintenance allowance would present a number of administrative difficulties. For instance, the DPMA is not under my control and there would be an additional cost involved. However, I am considering this matter.