Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I will address Deputy Ó Snodaigh's last query first. This is standard practice for increases and it arises from budgeting for weekly payments. As it ties into weekly payments it is very difficult to administer payment of partial weeks. This is why it is based on the different start dates and has been standard practice in payment of weekly payments since I came into the House and probably since the Deputy came into the House also.

In regard to Deputy O' Dea's comments on inflation, it depends on which group of experts are giving the inflation rates. However, certain items have gone up and others have gone down. In that regard I accept the point which was made by the Deputy. In this context I will now turn to the matter of the €3 pension increase. The Deputy is aware from the Spring Economic Statement of the exact boundaries within which this Government was operating. The Cabinet decided to not only provide for a €3 increase in the pension, but also to provide for a 75% Christmas bonus and an increase in the fuel allowance and the carers' allowance. The Deputy wishes to reference just the €3 figure but that increase is significantly more than was suggested by his own party in its pre-budget submission operating within the same constraints as the Government. We increased the pension by €3 but we also provided for the Christmas bonus, the fuel allowance and the much welcomed change in the carers' allowance. Those are the constraints within which the Government operated and they were acknowledge by Fianna Fáil when it used the same constraints in making its pre-budget submission.

The Government decided to not only increase the pension by €3 per week but to also bring back the Christmas bonus to 75%, increase the fuel allowance by €2.50 per week and to extend the carers' allowance from six to 12 weeks after the death of a carer, who is often a much loved member of the family. The €3 increase is one measure in a package which has been universally accepted. I do not think the Deputy suggested that we should create a €5 increase and not provide all the other increases. I ask that the Deputy looks at the whole package.