Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 September 2022
56. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media the interactions she has had with the Minister for Social Protection to ensure disabled artists in receipt of the basic income for the arts will not lose their disability allowance or blind pension; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47515/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI was determined since the outset of the Basic Income for the Arts pilot scheme that artists with disabilities would be in a position to participate in the scheme to the greatest extent possible within the legislative framework to ensure the research captured the experience of disabled artists.
To that end bilateral engagement has been ongoing between my Department and the Department of Social Protection for over a year, to get agreement that the payment will be treated as earnings from self-employment and can be taken into account in earnings disregards that applies to many social welfare payments including Disability Allowance. That means that the basic income for the arts will be treated like any other income a person on social welfare earns from employment.
The actual impact of the Basic Income on a person's welfare entitlements will depend on each individual’s circumstances, applicants will need to engage with the Department of Social Protection on the matter. The Department of Social Protection has undertaken to engage directly with disabled artists who are selected for the pilot to help them understand the impact accepting the payment would have in their individual circumstances.
The Department of Social Protection were also represented on the Oversight Committee I established tasked with advising on how best to implement the Arts and Culture Recovery Taskforce Report of which the basic income for the arts was the number one recommendation.
