Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 April 2024
56. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform if he has considered the extent of unclaimed benefits across different Government programmes; if he would consider establishing a cross-government initiative to better promote take-up of these schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15267/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraI would like to acknowledge the deputy's interest in the issue of benefit take-up; and note that the deputy has raised this issue recently in relation to a number of specific benefits and tax reliefs including Working Family Payment, Carer’s Support Grant, the Household Benefits Package, and tax allowances and reliefs. In relation to this question concerning benefits across Government, I take benefits to be referring to payments and free or subsidised access to services, such as the medical card, which are available through the State. There are many benefits available through the State, administered across a wide range of government departments and bodies. Over €53 billion in gross non-pay current expenditure has been allocated for 2024, a large proportion of which is for the provision of such benefits. These benefits typically have a claims process to establish eligibility, collect applicant details, payment details, and so forth. The State typically does not have information on eligibility in the absence of eligible claimants making contact with the relevant body to claim the benefits to which they are entitled. My Department does not have access to the extent to which benefit take-up estimates are available across the Public Services. That being said, there are some areas where research or recipient numbers suggest that take-up is lower than expected, such as the Working Family Payment administered by the Department of Social Protection or the expanded eligibility for GP visit cards administered by the Department of Health. Departments are making efforts to increase take-up in such cases. I would like to acknowledge there has been a lot of good work done across Government in recent years to boost public awareness through public information campaigns and enhance online information and application processes. However, I believe more can be done to support eligible citizens' awareness of benefits to which they are entitled and navigate the application process. I consider further initiatives in this space to be the responsibility of the department or body with responsibility for administering each benefit.
The aim of increasing benefit take-up is very much in line the ‘Better Public Services’ strategy being driven by my Department. ‘Better Public Services’, the public service transformation strategy, was launched in 2023. It encourages Public Service Bodies to identify and prioritise organisational actions aimed at putting the service user first in developing seamless and inclusive services for the public.
