Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The first amendment asks me to make a report on having increased the hours and not the disregard. What I said in the report I gave the Senator and again in my most recent contribution is that 92% of the people who currently receive carer's allowance have no means and, therefore, increasing the disregard will have no effect on them whatsoever. Only 0.1%, the tiniest percentage of people receiving carer's allowance, have means of between €250 and €300 a week. Increasing the means threshold would affect only that 0.1%. That is the report we did in preparation for the budget and that is exactly what I gave the Senator. If she presses the amendment, that is exactly what I will provide to her. I am in the Seanad's hands.