Mr. Alan Flynn:

The fuel allowance household-based payment has traditionally been linked to people being on a qualifying social protection payment. The big change made in the fuel allowance in the recent budget was the change for the over-70s in relation to the means assessment. It also provided that these applicants do not need to be on a qualifying social protection payment. This has been an expansion in terms of the means and also of the qualified cohort. This change is being monitored by the policy area for the effect on the scheme in terms of additional households qualifying without having to have an underlying social protection payment to trigger it.