Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

-----for people who are bereaved. The key support is that if somebody's spouse dies, particularly a pensioner's spouse, we continue the payment of the person who has died to the person who has been bereaved for a period of six weeks. That support is worth approximately €1,300 to the bereaved spouse. It is far more significant than the bereavement grant. Second, if people become widowed or a survivor and they have children aged 18 years or under, they get a cash grant of €6,000. That cash grant is paid if they have children up to 22 years of age still in education. Again, that is far more significant support than the bereavement grant. As some Senators pointed out, an amount of the bereavement grants goes to estates, whereas we are focusing the very significant cash supports on the immediate relatives, the spouse, widow or widower and the child or children, who were dependent on the person who has died.

I was required to reduce the budget by €440 million. Fianna Fáil in its plan for the troika would have reduced it by a further €200 million. That is in the history records if Fianna Fáil Members wish to see what its proposals were.