Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 11 November 2015

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection

Social Welfare Bill 2015: Committee Stage

1:00 pm

Photo of Aengus Ó SnodaighAengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There are a number of issues and I concur with Deputy O'Dea regarding the litany of cuts to benefits.

These cuts would affect people who are in receipt of the contributory pension and also some of the other pensions, some of which are already listed, and others which would also have an effect. For example, if prescription charges increase it would affect people who benefit from medical cards or the reduction of six weeks in fuel allowance would affect people who benefit from a fuel allowance. Deputy O'Dea referred to the fact that the Minister said that the €3 increase was above inflation and this is what annoyed me most. Even if one was to take the rate of inflation, which in the last four years is over 4.5%, then there should have been a €10 increase and it is nowhere near that. Different inflation figures apply to different people in some ways because if one was dependent upon a service and that service increased in price then the cumulative national inflation figure of 4% or 5% in the last few years does not hold and one might have a higher figure.

In some ways the Bill shows us, in very stark nature, the different rates for qualified adults. It needs to be tidied up so there is consistency in some way across the board - a later amendment refers to different rates. I will not suggest rates because we are excluded and prevented from suggesting changes which would incur a cost to the Exchequer. I have argued here and in the Dáil that this needs to be addressed in a Constitutional convention. Towards the end of the section relating to when the increases come into operation, and then again in the next section, there are two different dates. The logical thing to do would be to select 1 January 2016 as the date on which the legislation would come into effect. Maybe the date of Thursday 7 January is the first day of payment or the Friday 8 January is for the invalidity pension. Why can one date not be selected and then the next payment can be covered? I cannot understand why there are different start dates. The start date should be 1 January and the next payment would then take effect and a person would get the full benefit, or would lose some, based on the person's start date. When one goes further into the legislation, 1 January seems to be a set date, yet the 7 January and 8 January are selected in this instance. I could not figure out the logic of this other than it might be the date of the first payment. I do not think it would make much of a difference if we removed those dates out and enabled the increases to come into effect on 1 January. When a payment then falls due a person would get the full effect.

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