Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. I am very pleased to reiterate that there is no delay on this issue, nor any change of mind or tactic. We are in the position envisaged at the time of my announcement in this Chamber several months ago. The Cabinet decided to address the anomaly and legislation in that regard is well advanced. The only thing that must be decided is whether it will be addressed in the social welfare Bill or in stand-alone legislation. I make that point not to confuse or conflate the issue but, rather, in view of the particular timelines of this House.

I appreciate the comments made by Deputy Heydon. I was lucky to be the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection at a time when a large number of pensioners had mobilised over an unfair, unjust and discriminatory issue by which they had been affected since 2012. I pay particular tribute to the pensioners who persistently attended weekly clinics and to Age Action Ireland for its co-ordination of that campaign. I am happy to say that this is one of several instances when people have shouted loudly and the Government has heard them and is able to allocate money to the matter in the budget.

A total of 67,000 people have been impacted. To answer the question of Deputy Durkan, not all of them are in Ireland, with some 9,000 living outside the State. All those affected will be contacted in the coming weeks, well in advance of Christmas. I hope and assume that the assessments will be completed by then.

The temporary staff will all be in place by the end of next week and will then begin training. Thereafter, the letters will issue and the assessments will commence. By the end of the first quarter of next year each of those 67,000 people who choose to move to a new increased payment will have received their backlog in the form of a little lump sum and will be on the new payment.

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