Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

My Department provides the fish assist support, which is available to self-employed fishers on a low income under the means-tested jobseeker's allowance scheme. It is based on the conditions and rate of payment under the farm assist scheme.

The fish assist scheme provides favourable treatment to self-employed fishers compared with other self-employed workers through additional income disregards and entitlement to secondary benefits. For example, under the jobseeker's allowance, self-employed income is assessed at 100%. This is reduced to 70% under the fish assist and farm assist schemes. Child disregards also apply that do not exist for jobseeker's allowance.

My Department also has responsibility for the rural social scheme, which provides income support for those engaged in farming and fishing who have an entitlement to specified social welfare payments. Participants work 19.5 hours per week providing services that benefit rural communities and receive a top-up on their social welfare payment.

Fish assist is a demand-led scheme. There are currently 43 people in receipt of fish assist. These are based in counties Donegal, Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Kerry, Cork, Waterford and Wexford. I will provide the Deputy with a table showing the breakdown per county. He will be interested to know that, of that total of 43, there are nine recipients of fish assist in Galway. Consideration and decisions in relation to any social protection rates as part of budget 2026 will be taken in the context of the overall funding available. The negotiations continue.

See this speech in context