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Social Welfare Benefits

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 May 2022

Tuesday, 17 May 2022

Ceisteanna (486)

Danny Healy-Rae

Ceist:

486. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason that self-employed persons are not entitled to claim illness benefit if they are unable to work due to illness; the measures that are being taken to bring about changes to same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24217/22]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

Illness Benefit is the primary income support provided by my department to those who cannot work due to illness of any kind. Illness Benefit is a social insurance payment and eligibility depends on the person’s Pay Relayed Social Insurance (PRSI) record and class. Only contributions made in Class A, E, H or P count toward this payment.

Self-employed people who make PRSI contributions at Class S cannot claim Illness Benefit. This is due to the fact that people in Class S pay contributions to the Social Insurance Fund at a lower rate of 4%.

Although self-employed people are not usually eligible for Illness Benefit, an exception was made in relation to Covid-19 enhanced Illness Benefit, primarily as a public health measure, to encourage people to not go to work due to financial constraint when they should be in isolation.

There has been an extensive expansion of access to the range of social insurance benefits for self-employed contributors in recent years without any increase in the 4% rate of contribution made by them. Where all qualification criteria for the particular scheme are satisfied, PRSI contributions in Class S give access to:

- Adoptive Benefit;

- Guardian's Payment (Contributory);

- Invalidity Pension;

- Jobseeker's Benefit (Self-Employed);

- Maternity Benefit;

- Parent's Benefit;

- Partial Capacity Benefit (where in receipt of Invalidity Pension);

- Paternity Benefit;

- State Pension (Contributory);

- Treatment Benefit; and

- Widows, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) Pension.

The benefits to which Class S PRSI does not provide access are Carer's Benefit, Health and Safety Benefit, Illness Benefit, and Occupational Injuries Benefits.

In effect, self-employed contributors, in return for a contribution of 11 percentage points lower than the combined employer and employee contribution of 15.05% made in respect of employed contributors, have access to benefits which comprise over 90% of the value of all benefits available to employed contributors.

Illness Benefit is funded by the Social Insurance Fund through the payment of PRSI contributions. The Fund is central to Ireland’s system of social protection and the Government needs to ensure that it can provide adequate and sustainable social insurance pensions and benefits for a growing and ageing population.

The Programme for Government commits to giving consideration to increasing all classes of PRSI over time to replenish the Social Insurance Fund to help pay for measures and changes to be agreed including to the State pension system, improvements in short-term sick pay benefits, parental leave benefits, pay-related jobseeker's benefit and treatment benefits.

I do not intend to extend illness benefit to persons that are self-employed at this time. My Department will continue to keep its range of supports under review to ensure that they meet their overall objectives. Any changes to the current system would need to be considered in an overall policy and budgetary context.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

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