It is not clear what additional benefits the Deputy has in mind. While overall the levels of all social welfare payments need to be increased, old age pensions have increased, in real terms, by over 40 per cent over the past 20 years. Social welfare expenditure on transfers to the elderly amounts to £1,068 million this year equivalent to over 26 per cent of total social welfare expenditure. This expenditure is in respect of over 321,000 elderly people, including their dependants.
The free schemes administered by my Department include free travel, free electricity allowance, free natural gas allowance, free telephone rental allowance and free television licence. They are available, in the case of free travel, to all persons in the State aged 66 years and over and to certain disabled people under age 66 and, in the case of the other schemes, to persons who are in receipt of a welfare-type payment who satisfy the living alone condition. In addition the free fuel allowance is available to elderly people who are in receipt of long-term social welfare or health board payments and who are unable to provide for their own heating needs.