Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

My Department provides a suite of income supports to people with disabilities, including disability allowance, DA, blind pension, invalidity pension and partial capacity benefit. DA is a means-tested payment for people who are substantially restricted from working because of their disability. Invalidity pension is a weekly social insurance benefit payment made to people who are regarded as being permanently incapable of work because of a long-term illness or disability.

As is the case with the majority of my Department's schemes, expenditure on DA and invalidity pension is demand led. All applicants who meet the criteria of the schemes are entitled to a payment. There is no budget cap. If necessary, I bring forward Supplementary Estimates to address any situation where demand and costs exceed that set out in the annual Estimates. In the Revised Estimates for 2025, expenditure allocation for DA is just under €2.4 billion and the allocation for invalidity pension is €817 million. The total between the two is about €3.2 billion. Looking ahead to 2026, the equivalent figures to be presented to the Oireachtas are €2.6 billion for DA and €800 million for invalidity pension, which is a total of about €3.4 billion.

As part of budget 2026, I was pleased to secure an increase in funding of nearly €200 million across both schemes compared with the 2025 allocations. These increases will provide for: a €10 weekly increase to the maximum personal rate of payment on both schemes, with proportionate increases for qualified adults and those on reduced rates; the largest ever increases to the rate of the child support payment, at €8 per week in respect of children aged under 12 and €16 per week in respect of children aged 12 and over; the extension of the back-to-work family dividend scheme to people on DA and blind pension; and people moving from DA or blind pension to take up work will be able to retain their fuel allowance payment for five years.

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