Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

The question always arises as to whether it is better to put the money into one scheme, like giving an extra week's fuel allowance payments, or to apply it to general rates across the board. All these issues need to be considered in the context of the budget, bearing in mind that there are particular pressures because of the price of fuel, which we recognise.

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