Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Keogan for her very-well presented argument in favour of this allowance. The household benefits package comprises the electricity or gas allowance and free television licence. The Department of Social Protection will spend approximately €273 million this year on the household benefit package for more than 484,000 customers. All proposals, including any proposal to introduce a new broadband allowance as part of the household benefit package could only be considered while taking account overall Government policy and budgetary considerations.

Given the many competing demands for the limited funding available to the Department of Social Protection, recent budget spending increases have been targeted to ensure that it goes to those people who need help the most. Therefore, as well as increasing social welfare payments weekly rates, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, has increased the rate of household-based schemes such as the living alone allowance and the fuel allowance which are targeted towards households that are at a higher risk of poverty, as evidenced by recent ESRI research.

As part of the overall welfare budget package of €600 million in increases, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, secured for 2022, she is pleased to see an increase the fuel allowance payment by €5 per week, effective from budget night. This brought the weekly rate of payment to €33. In addition, as part of the budget, the Minister increased the weekly income threshold for fuel allowance by €20. As fuel allowance is a means-tested payment, this ensures that it is targeted towards those most in need of the payment.

People who live alone are considered among those most at risk of social isolation and the living alone allowance is paid by the Department in part a recognition of the greater challenges facing those living alone in avoiding poverty.In budget 2022, the Government increased the living alone allowance by €3 per week to €22 a week. This increase means that, since 2019, the living alone allowance has more than doubled in value from €9 to €22.

The household benefits package is only one of the Department's schemes. The Department of Social Protection also pays the telephone support allowance, TSA, to over 137,000 customers weekly. The TSA is an allowance of €2.50 that supports recipients by assisting them with the cost of communications and-or security solutions for their home. The primary objective of the TSA is to support the most vulnerable people at risk of isolation, including the elderly and those with disabilities, to access the critical communications infrastructure. In order to receive the allowance, a customer of the Department must be in receipt of a qualifying payment and both the living alone allowance and fuel allowance. This means the scheme specifically targets those who need it most.

Furthermore, the Department of Social Protection operates both exceptional and urgent needs payments as part of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme for people who have an urgent need that they cannot meet from their own resources. These payments are available through the community welfare officers network.