Vol. 557 No. 1
488 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs further to Parliamentary Question No. 1680 of 9 October 2002, the number of pensioners and other claimants who avail of the electronic transfer fund; and if these payments will be aligned with all weekly payments. [21658/02]
The number of beneficiaries receiving their payments by means of electronic fund transfer, EFT, stands at 360,000. The EFT payment frequency is aligned with other payment methods in the case of child benefit, 154,000, and also in the case of beneficiaries receiving payments under a variety of schemes which are short-term in nature, 94,000. In the case of beneficiaries receiving pensions and similar payments of a long-term nature the EFT payment to some 92,000 is made two weeks in arrears and in the case of the remaining 20,000 it is one week in arrears. When payment by EFT was introduced for long-term payments in 1993, payment was made four week in arrears.
I intend to make further progress on aligning the payment frequency in these cases during 2003.
EFT Payments
|
No. on EFT |
EFT Compared to other Payment Methods |
|
|
PSO Schemes: |
92,176 |
2 weeks in arrears |
|
Longford Schemes: |
||
|
Disability Allowance |
10,308 |
1 week in arrears |
|
Invalidity |
9,278 |
1 week in arrears |
|
Carers Allowance |
1,147 |
1 week in arrears |
|
Total |
20,733 |
1 week in arrears |
|
Carers Benefit |
326 |
aligned |
|
Maternity |
7,838 |
aligned |
|
ISTS (excluding Longford) |
||
|
DG |
10,261 |
aligned |
|
UB |
25,288 |
aligned |
|
UA |
12,603 |
aligned |
|
S/H and FA |
1,684 |
aligned |
|
SWA |
8,930 |
aligned |
|
BTW (ISTS) |
22,277 |
aligned |
|
PRETA |
1,426 |
aligned |
|
BTW (pen live) |
2,895 |
aligned |
|
Total |
93,528 |
weekly aligned |
|
CTBO |
||
|
CB |
154,053 |
monthly aligned |
|
Overall Total |
360,490 |
