Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

Deputy Donnelly spoke about poverty. If somebody with little or no income, who does not have three years' contribution, becomes widowed, without any contributions he or she gets the non-contributory widow's pension. The current arrangements will apply in future also. If somebody suddenly becomes widowed early in life without time to build up contributions and is not well off, he or she will qualify on a means-tested basis for a non-contributory widow's or widower's pension. Even someone in his or her early 20s will get that until he or she goes onto the old age pension or until he or she chooses to remarry.

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