Vol. 508 No. 4
56 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will restore the Christmas bonus to 100 per cent for qualifying social welfare recipients as a demonstration for the necessity of developing a major initiative on social exclusion in the forthcoming talks on a successive agreement to Partnership 2000. [18878/99]
The bonus payment was first introduced in December 1980 as a double payment – 100 per cent bonus – and continued at that level until 1984. Lower levels of payment applied during the period 1985 to 1988. In 1989 it was pitched at 70 per cent and has remained at that level since.
An amount of £42 million is provided in my Department's 1999 Estimates to provide for payment of a Christmas bonus for approximately 715,000 recipients of long-term social welfare payments. This estimate is based on the payment of a bonus in 1999 similar to the bonus paid in 1998 and earlier years i.e. 70 per cent of the person's normal weekly payment subject to a minimum payment of £20.
The bonus will be paid to recipients of disablement pension; death benefit, by way of pension, old age contributory and non-contributory pension; retirement pension; invalidity pension; widow's and widower's non-contributory pension; orphan's contributory and non-contributory pension; pre-retirement allowance; blind pension; carer's allowance; one parent family payment; unemployment assistance at the long-term rate; disability allowance; farm assist; payments to people formerly in receipt of deserted wife's benefit and allowance and prisoner's wife's allowance.
The Christmas bonus is payable to recipients of long-term social welfare schemes. Any change in the amount of the bonus or in the categories of persons to whom it is paid would have substantial cost implications and would have to be considered in the context of other priorities and commitments.
