Vol. 477 No. 5
260 Mr. O'Leary asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will double the increase granted in 1997 to old age and widow pensioners in view of the high rate of revenue buoyancy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9510/97]
I refer the Deputy to the answers in my replies to Questions Nos. 249 and 250 on 25 February 1997 in which I outlined the very extensive range of measures I introduced this year for old age and widow pensioners. I would add that any further substantial improvements in this area could only be considered in a budgetary context.
261 Miss. M. Wallace asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of weeks in which free fuel was paid by his Department in each of the past five years; and the amount which might be paid per week to an individual recipient over the same period. [9568/97]
The national fuel scheme assists householders who are on long-term social welfare or health board payments and who are unable to provide for their own heating needs. A payment of £5 per week is paid to eligible households for 26 weeks each year from mid-October to mid-April and this has been the case since the rationalisation of the urban and national fuel schemes in 1988.
An additional smokeless fuel allowance of £3 per week was introduced in October 1990 to assist people living in the built up areas of Dublin to help meet the additional costs arising from the ban on the sale of bituminous coal in these areas. This was later extended to Cork city and adjacent areas to coincide with the ban on the sale of bituminous coal which came into effect there on 13 February 1995.
262 Mr. S. Brennan asked the Minister for Social Welfare the estimated cost of extending the free television licence and free telephone rental schemes to all widowed persons in receipt of a social welfare payment; the cost of the existing schemes in each of the years 1995 and 1996; the projected cost for 1997; the relevant statistics for the number of people involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9570/97]
The free schemes, including the free telephone rental allowance and the free television licence, are available to people, usually aged 66 or over, who are in receipt of a welfare type payment and who are either living alone or who otherwise satisfy the living alone condition. In addition, widows between the age of 60 and 65, whose late husbands had entitlement to the free schemes, retain that entitlement.
The free schemes were extended in July 1996 to low-income pensioners who were not in receipt of a social welfare type payment. The weekly income limit fixed for this purpose is the maximum personal rate of old age (contributory) pension, currently £75 per week, plus any increases for dependants, plus £30. The estimated additional annual cost of extending the two schemes in question to all widowed persons in receipt of a social welfare payment, regardless of their age or household composition circumstances, is £4.5 million in respect of the free television licence and £11.6 million in respect of the free telephone rental allowance. A further 69,820 recipients would be entitled to the free television licence and a further 71,200 recipients to the free telephone rental allowance.
The estimated costs of the two schemes in question, together with number of recipients, for each of the years 1995, 1996 and 1997 is as follows:
|
1995 |
1996 |
1997 |
|
|
Television Licence |
£10.4m. |
£13.4m. |
£14.5m. |
|
Recipients |
44,210 |
45,150 |
46,120 |
|
Telephone Rental |
£23.2m. |
£24.5m. |
£27.0m. |
|
Recipients |
41,530 |
43,873 |
45,200 |
263 Mr. Haughey asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will extend the additional six week payment scheme following the death of a spouse to surviving spouses who have their own pension books in the interests of equality and fairness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9599/97]
A six weeks payment after death is payable in circumstances where both spouses have a separate entitlement provided one or both of the entitlements is a non-contributory old age pension, a blind pension or a carer's allowance. The payment does not arise where each spouse has an independent entitlement to an insurance-based contributory pension. Extension of the payment to these categories would cost in the region of £1 million per annum and could be considered only in a budgetary context.
