Vol. 415 No. 1
267 Mr. Yates asked the Minister for Social Welfare if his attention has been drawn to the anomaly in relation to eligibility for a free fuel allowance whereby a husband and wife, both being pensioners, are eligible for a free fuel allowance whereas two identical pensioners who are brother and sister are not eligible; if, in view of this anomaly, he will rectify the situation and if he will approve a free fuel allowance to a person (details supplied) in County Wexford.
The national fuel scheme is intended to help households who are dependent on long term social welfare or health board payments and who are unable to provide for their own heating needs.
An applicant for a fuel allowance must satisfy a means test to fulfil the conditions that he is unable to provide for his own heating needs. A recipient of a contributory social welfare pension is regarded as being unable to provide for his heating needs if he and members of the household in which he resides have income of not more than £5 per week in addition to the social welfare payments.
The person in question does not qualify for the allowance as he has means, in addition to his social welfare contributory pension, of some £28 per week from an occupational pension. A brother and sister living in the same household are treated in relation to this condition no differently from a married couple in the same situation.
268 Mr. Ellis asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will outline the position with regard to the claim for a retirement pension of a person (details supplied) in County Leitrim; and if he will make a statement on the investigation which was to have been carried out by his Department on the contributions which were paid by this person and which has not been carried out.
The person concerned was refused retirement pension in July 1990 as his yearly average of 17 contributions from 1955 to 1990 was too low to satisfy the minimum contribution conditions of the scheme. His low average is attributable to the fact that there is no record of contributions on his behalf for the year 1957 and from 1959 to 1975.
269 Mr. Spring asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will outline his views on the decision by his Department not to allow disability benefit to a person (details supplied) in County Galway who had been discharged from his employment with the Western Health Board on the basis of a medical report from its consultant orthopaedic surgeon that the person in question was incapable of performing the full range of duties required of him; and if he will have the case reopened.
The person concerned was examined by a medical referee and deemed to be capable of work following which payment of disability benefit was discontinued. He appealed against this decision to the independent social welfare appeals office and he was referred for a further medical examination by a different medical referee and he was again deemed capable of work. While the claimant may be deemed unfit to continue in the employment of the health board, in acordance with the criteria of the particular health board this would not necessarily preclude him from seeking work elsewhere nor would it preclude work of an alternative nature.
His case was considered by an appeals officer who held an oral hearing of the appeal. Having considered all the evidence available the appeals officer disallowed the appeal. The appeals officer's decision is final and may only be altered in the light of new evidence or facts. It is of course open to the appellant to submit any new evidence or facts that he wishes to have considered.
