Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

My office has been contacted by people who work at the front line in the administration of these payments and they tell me they are at breaking point because of the understaffing, not just recently but for some time, and the demands that have been placed on them. It is not helped by Ministers telling everybody who cannot afford to put petrol in their car to run to the community welfare officer and everything will be fine. All the problems and solutions seem to be pointing in the same direction. It is left to those on the front line to break the news to people that many of these statements are inaccurate, misleading or grossly exaggerated.

Those on the front line also claim that the recent introduction of the additional needs payment was not communicated to them - the people who administer it - until the day after it was announced to the public. This raises the question of how much thought, preparation and planning have been put into it. We know this payment is desperately needed by so many right across the country. The payment is administered to them by the Government and it is important that we ensure people get it in time.

My colleague, Deputy Kerrane, has been championing the issue of making sure that people can access the payment online. I understand that the Minister responded to the call earlier. That is one solution. It should have been done long before now. Deputy Kerrane has been calling for this for some time. Does the Minister have any other solutions or will she take up that proposal, along with other solutions, to alleviate the burden on those who are on the front line? The Minister should pay the staff respect when communicating the introduction of a new payment.

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