Vol. 511 No. 1
22 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if all outstanding arrears will be paid to widows, widowers, pensioners and other benefit claimants in the context of budget 2000; and the cost of discharging these arrears. [23639/99]
Under existing arrangements, where a claim to old age contributory pension, retirement pension, widow's or widower's contributory pension or orphan's contributory allowance is made late, arrears of up to 12 months are paid. This applies to any claims made after 1 January 1997. Under regulations which I made in 1998 additional arrears beyond 12 months are paid on a sliding scale.
For pension claims made prior to 1 January 1997, arrears of up to six months can be paid. I also made additional provision this year for payment of further arrears on a sliding scale at an estimated cost of £10 million. My Department has paid arrears in 1,887 such cases. Work on identifying additional cases which may be entitled to arrears payments is continuing.
Regardless of when late pension claims are made, there is provision to pay further arrears in certain cases, namely where the person is proven to have been incapable of claiming on time, where wrong information was given by the Department, force majeure or where the claimant is currently suffering financial hardship.
It is a long-standing requirement of our legislation that claims should be made within a certain time and that payment of arrears may be affected by failures in that regard. Similar provisions are a feature of the legislation of other countries. These restrictions are justified by the need to exercise supervision and control of claims and by the need to exercise sound financial management and control of public expenditure.
The changes which have been made in this year's budget and going back to 1997 represent a significant improvement in the position that has applied heretofore and strike a reasonable balance between the need for effective management of the system and for appropriate recognition to be given to cases of genuine hardship or difficulty. Pensioners with late claims now receive full arrears for a certain period of their claim plus a proportion of arrears over the remaining period of the late claim. Full arrears for the entire period of the claim may be made in certain circumstances.
The Ombudsman has taken a particular interest in this matter over a number of years and the provisions which we have made represent a full response to the issues raised by him. My Department will ensure that any outstanding cases where arrears may be due will be dealt with as quickly as possible.
I am disappointed that a series of questions on carers and disability was ruled out of order by the Ceann Comhairle on the basis of a Private Members' debate.
That is a longstanding practice and is nothing new.
The Labour Party and I find it very difficult to bear. Does the Minister agree with the submission from the National Association of Widows of Ireland that the failure of the Minister and his Department to pay justified late arrears has to be condemned out of hand? It is an outrageous scandal. Does he agree with the distinguished journalist, Fintan O'Toole, who highlighted this in his column in The Irish Times recently, finishing his piece by saying: “The letter of the law, so meaningless—“
It is not in order to quote from the newspapers.
I want the Minister's views on this.
Nonetheless, it is not in order to quote.
Does the Minister agree the letter of the law is being adhered to, as Fintan O'Toole said, with an old testament implacability by the Minister in relation to widows, widowers, contributory and non-contributory old age pensioners, whereas, a much lighter view has been taken of the misdemeanours of bankers and businessmen who defrauded the State? This is gross hypocrisy and the Minister should end it once and for all at a cost of perhaps £17 million in the forthcoming budget.
The Deputy can rant and rave all he likes, I have done more on this issue than any other Minister, particularly those in office when the Deputy's party was in Government.
The widows condemned the Minister this morning.
The Rainbow Coalition did nothing about those entitled to arrears pre-1997 although it did something about post-1997 arrears. When I entered office I gave a commitment to this and a sum of £10 million was included in last year's budget to take care of a proportion of the arrears prior to 1997. I was the first Minister to do anything substantial in this regard. As Deputy Broughan quoted from a hurler on the ditch, I will quote from the Ombudsman who looked at this issue and stated in his most recent report that it was a historical problem – much of the cause of which pre-dated my entry into office – which, in the light of developments since 1997, that is, since this Government came into office, has now been "significantly ameliorated". He also accepts that because of the improvements made since 1997 the pension arrears issue is "unlikely to continue to be of major concern" to his office and that he intends this report to mark the end of his office's involvement with the general issue of lost arrears of con tributory pension. This Government and I have done more on this issue than any other previous Government, including those of which the Deputy was a Member.
The reality is that the Minister's Department did not pay money owed to entitled claimants – in some cases for up to 44 years, which is an unbelievable state of affairs. The Ombudsman was harsh in his criticism of the Minister and his Department throughout his report. The general point stands. An allocation of £17 million in the budget on this day fortnight would dispense with this problem. The Minister seems to be constantly changing the rules on this. A few weeks ago he visited Sligo and in a newsletter for pensioners, widows and widowers he stated he would listen to people looking for their justified arrears after 12 months.
The time is up.
If wrong information was given by the Department and if there is incapacity—
We must proceed with Question No. 23.
— or force majeure, perhaps the Minister should activate it and pay the justified arrears to the widows and widowers.
I call Question No. 23.
Bluster will get the Deputy nowhere. He has a short memory and it is a pity he will cod the people – I assure him they are not codded.
