Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I very much welcome the legislation before us. It proposes to extend the eligibility payment to qualified cohabitants who were in an intimate and committed relationship for more than five years, or two years where there is a child or children in the relationship. Sometimes, however, I wonder where we get the timelines from - two years with a child and five years without children. Some people cannot have children, and in some ways that feels a little discriminatory against them.

Just recently I got a message from a constituent whom I know really well and who sadly lost her partner. She said:

I applied for the widows pension as my partner of 28 years passed away on 28th of November 2024.

The application has been refused, however I was his full time carer, his next of kin.

He was a legal tenant in our house and I was able to collect his death certificate. We were common law husband and wife.

I would have thought this would have been enough for this application to be approved.

The stress and the distress this caused is absolutely immeasurable. I am glad to know that she will be able to access this payment and that she will be entitled to it. Sometimes, however, it can be very puzzling as to why it is necessary for somebody to go to the High Court or the Supreme Court to vindidate what seems to be - we are all talking about it today - a fair thing to do. I wonder if, of all those cases that happened before the family went to the Supreme Court, somebody sat down and said, "That looks unfair", but nothing was done about it until somebody then had to go through the stress, anxiety and cost of bringing it to the Supreme Court and the High Court and all the other judicial measures that need to be brought before we stand here today and say, "Yes, this is the right thing to do." We need to reflect on that, and those in government need to reflect on it because I am sure there are circumstances in which people are probably looking to go to the High Court or the Supreme Court in respect of other measures that seem equally unfair. I ask that we reflect on that.

The other issue - it has been raised on several occasions by many people - is the payment prior to January 2024. This fits into what I have just been talking about as regards those people who may not have had the wherewithal, the strength, the energy or maybe the finances to go to court to vindicate their rights in the context of this payment. I know the reason is that it was upheld in the Supreme Court in January 2024 but, in the sense of fairness, surely those people who were entitled to it prior to 2024 should be looked upon in the same sense of fairness that we look at today for those subsequent to January 2024.

The question from my constituent would be, when will they be able to avail of this payment and when will they be able to claim? A great many people are looking at us today and hoping that within a very short time they will be able to access this payment.

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