Larry Butler (Fianna Fail)

Since 2007, the telephone allowance scheme has given pensioners the option of having a mobile phone instead of a fixed landline. In 2006, the fuel allowance was increased by €5 a week to €14 and this year we increased it by a further €4 to €18 a week. This means that the level of the fuel allowance, which is paid to 274,000 recipients, will have doubled in the past two years. I want to place on record the fact that this constitutes a major improvement in support for elderly people.

We have done a great deal of work for the elderly in the past five or six years. Their situation has improved in terms of comfort and facilities. Numerous aspects of life for the elderly have been improved, including the seven-day travel pass. I commend the budget for 2009.