Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as an gceist seo. The household benefits package comprises the electricity or gas allowance, and the free television licence. The Department of Social Protection will spend approximately €285 million this year on the household benefits package for more than 510,000 customers and their households.

The household benefits package is available to those aged 70 or over, regardless of means and household composition and subject to one package per household. It is also available as a supplementary allowance to those in receipt of various social welfare payments, including but not limited to carer's allowance, State contributory pension, State non-contributory pension and widow's-widower's or surviving civil partner's contributory pension. While there has been no recent increase to the gas-electricity element of the household benefits package, the Government instead has targeted resources available to it towards increases to core social welfare payments and to more targeted payments such as the fuel allowance.

It is important to note that these targeted increases were informed by the Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, research, which indicated that certain household types, such as those living alone, were at a higher risk of poverty than other households.

During the period referred to by the Deputy, the living alone increase, which is an extra payment for people who are living alone and receiving certain social welfare payments, has increased from €7.70 to €22 per week, an almost tripling of the weekly rate. Also, during that period, the weekly rate of the fuel allowance payment has increased by 65% from €20 to €33 a week. There has also been significant expansion of the fuel allowance qualifying criteria and in budget 2023, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, announced the largest ever expansion of the fuel allowance criteria.

From January 2023, a new fuel allowance means threshold was introduced for people aged 70 years and over. The new means threshold is €500 for a single person and €1,000 for a couple. Under the formula used to assess means for the fuel allowance for over 70s, the threshold for capital that is disregarded in the assessment was increased from €20,000 to €50,000. The weekly means threshold for those aged under 70 was increased by €80 to €200 above the appropriate rate of the contributory State pension.

Similarly, the allowable means for household benefits purposes for those aged between 66 and 69 not in receipt of a qualifying payment was also increased by €80 to €200 above the appropriate rate of the contributory State pension.

The Government is also aware of the increased cost of living and, in budget 2023, has provided an unprecedented response that aims to ease the financial pressure on households throughout the State. Government cost-of-living measures included a cost-of-living double payment paid to social protection recipients in October. A €200 lump sum payment was paid to pensioners and people with a disability receiving the living alone increase in November. A €500 cost-of-living payment was paid to people receiving carer's support grant, disability allowance, invalidity pension, blind pension and to those in receipt of working family payment. A €400 additional lump sum payment was paid to all households in receipt of the fuel allowance payment and a double month of child benefit was paid. In December, a Christmas bonus double payment was paid to 1.3 million social protection recipients. From January 2023, the maximum rate of core social welfare rates was increased and there were also increases to the qualified adult and qualified child rates. The enhanced electricity credit of €600 is another important Government measure to help mitigate the effects of the recent unprecedented rise in electricity prices.

Many of those in receipt of the household benefits package will also have benefited from these supports, which must be looked at in the round. All further measures, including any proposal to increase the electricity allowance as part of the household benefits package would only be considered while taking account of overall Government policy and budgetary considerations.

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