Ms Clare Duffy:

The participation income and the abolition of the means test are not mutually exclusive; they are almost the same thing. Participation income is like a universal basic income which just recognises the contribution by the recipient. In this case the carer is getting a guaranteed payment, the carer's allowance, in recognition of the care he or she provides and his or her contribution to society. They are almost the same thing; in fact, I think they are the same thing. It would not necessarily be the Department of Social Protection that would undertake the review of the carer's allowance because it must be within the broader health and social care environment. The terms of reference should include comparing the abolition of the means test with the establishment of a participation income, as recommended by NESC. To my simple mind, they are not very different if different at all.