Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 11 Oct 1994

Vol. 445 No. 6

Written Answers. - Social Welfare Statistics.

Michael Bell

Ceist:

172 Mr. Bell asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of married couples with children who are in receipt of unemployment assistance for each of the past five years; the number of married couples for the same period who are drawing benefit separately and dividing payment for dependants; if payment of unemployment assistance is divided if both persons receive the maximum personal benefit; and, when both spouses are being paid unemployment assistance, if they are counted as one or two unemployed persons for the purpose of the calculation of unemployed statistics. [333/94]

Minister for Social Welfare (Dr. Woods)

The following tables taken from the Department's annual statistical report from 1989 to 1993, inclusive, set out the relevant analysis of the live register.

Married couples with children in receipt of unemployment benefit or assistance can be identified as a claim for a recipient with increases for an adult dependant and full-rate child dependants and these are highlighted in the extracts. The totals for this category for each of the last five years are as follows:

Year	Number	% of Total Live Register
1993	51,218	17.2%
1992	49,212	16.8%
1991	44,956	16.7%
1990	41,998	18.0%
1989	43,368	18.8%

It should be noted, however, that in addition to married couples with children, these figures also include cohabiting couples with children who are treated similarly to married couples under the social welfare code.

Where both spouses are claiming unemployment assistance in their own right, the claims are counted separately for the purposes of counting the live register. However, under section 122 (1) of the 1993 Consolidation Act, payment to married or cohabiting couples claiming separately is restricted to the maximum personal rate plus the adult dependant allowance. Each spouse or partner receives one half of this payment plus half-rate child dependant increases where applicable.

These cases are included in the "Recipients with no Adult Dependant and Half-Rate Child Allowances" category, also highlighted in the extract. However, this also includes, for example, claimants in receipt of unemployment assistance whose spouse-partner is in receipt of another social welfare benefit or pension or whose spouse is in insurable employment and earning in excess of £60 per week.

Proinsias De Rossa

Ceist:

173 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of males and females who are aged 25 and those under 25 respectively who are signing for credits, but who are not in receipt of unemployment assistance. [343/94]

Minister for Social Welfare (Dr. Woods)

The number of people signing for credits only at 26 August 1994 is as follows:

	Male	Female	All persons
Under 25	181	670	851
Over 25	2,439	11,986	14,425
Total	2,620	12,656	15,276

Source: Central Statistics Office.