Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 4 Jul 2001

Vol. 540 No. 2

Written Answers. - Social Welfare Payments.

Bernard J. Durkan

Ceist:

42 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs his proposals to increase all social welfare payments by a specific amount on a planned basis for the future, with particular reference to the need to take account of inflation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20200/01]

Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

It has been the practice of this Government to give real increases to social welfare recipients. While the rate of inflation is not easy to predict, if inflation is higher than the estimated figure for a particular year, account is taken of that in the following budget. This approach has ensured that, over the term of this Government, social welfare rates have increased well above the rate of inflation.

The issue of the future indexation or uprating of welfare payments is amongst those being considered at present by the social welfare benchmarking and indexation group. This group, which was established under the terms of the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness, PPF, is required by its terms of reference to: examine the issues involved in developing a benchmark for adequacy of adult and child social welfare payments, including the implications of adopting a specific approach to the ongoing uprating or indexation of payments, having regard to their long-term economic, budgetary, PRSI contribution, distributive and incentive implications, in light of trends in economic, demographic and labour market patterns; and examine the issue of relative income poverty.

The group has been meeting fortnightly since December 2000 and produced an interim report at the end of April. The group is aiming to complete its work by the end of this month and it is envisaged that its final report will be produced shortly thereafter.

Given that the group was specifically established under the terms of the PPF to examine the issues involved, the Deputy will appreciate that it would be inappropriate for me to seek to pre-empt its findings at this stage. I can assure the Deputy, however, that careful consideration will be taken of the conclusions reached by the group once its work has been completed, both in the context of the forthcoming budget and in the wider context of the development of welfare policy generally.