Ms Niamh Kavanagh:

I could not have put it better myself. To add to that, Citizens Information put in a submission last year referencing the fact that the pension system is so complex that even it struggles to figure out the needs and entitlements of a given pensioner. On means testing limits, supplementary welfare and being means-tested on savings, many people were disqualified because the threshold did not go up in line with inflation and the small pension increase of €12 per week. They found that fuel allowance and other welfare payments were taken from them because of that.