Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 131: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if an anomaly exists whereby a woman earning an allowance of €119 as an adult dependant on their spouse's pension is able to earn up to €100 per week without any reduction being made, whereas a woman who receives €96.80 pension payment in their own right is not able to earn anything additional; his plans to close such loopholes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4808/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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In the case of contributory pensions and most other contributory and non-contributory social welfare payments, a qualified adult allowance, QAA, is payable in respect of a spouse or partner who is wholly or mainly maintained by the claimant.

Account is taken of the spouse or partner's income for the purposes of determining whether the spouse is wholly or mainly dependent. A spouse or partner's income includes income from employment, self-employment, income from other sources such as rents from the letting of property and income from occupational pensions and foreign social security payments, as well as income from capital. Thus, for the purposes of determining whether a person is wholly or mainly dependant, account is taken of the totality of the spouse or partner's income without regard to the source of that income.

Prior to budget 2006, a qualified adult allowance at the maximum rate was payable where the spouse-partner's income was less than €88.89 per week and tapered reduced rates were payable where income was greater than €88.89, but less than €220 per week. A QAA was not payable where income exceeded €220 per week.

On budget day, as part of my reform programme, I was pleased to announce a number of further improvements to these means testing arrangements, including an increase in the spouse's income threshold for entitlement to the qualified adult allowance from €88.88 to €100 a week. This improvement comes into effect on different dates, depending on the scheme in question, during the course of 2006. The upper threshold for entitlement to a tapered rate of QAA is also being increased to €240 per week with effect from January last and to €250 when the lower threshold increases to €100.

I should clarify that the €100 a week threshold relates to all income and not just income from employment. Accordingly, there is no anomaly in the situation outlined by the Deputy where the spouse has a private pension of €96.80 per week. The person could have a pension of up to €100 a week and still qualify for a full QAA.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 133: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if the free schemes will be extended to other groups who do not as yet qualify with particular reference to those who might need special heating or telephone requirements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4901/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The household benefits package, which comprises the electricity-gas allowance, telephone allowance and television licence schemes, is generally available to people living permanently in the State, aged 66 years or over, who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test.

The package is also available to carers and people with disabilities under the age of 66 who are in receipt of certain welfare type payments. People aged over 70 years of age can qualify regardless of their income or household composition.

Widows and widowers aged from 60 to 65 whose late spouses had been in receipt of the household benefits package retain that entitlement to ensure that households do not suffer a loss of entitlements following the death of a spouse.

In recognition of higher home heating costs, the rate of fuel allowance was increased in budget 2006 by €5 or 56% a week, with effect from January 2006. This brings the rate of fuel allowance to €14 per week. Recipients in designated urban smokeless fuel zones receive €17.90 per week. This is payable for a 29 week period from end of September to mid-April each year.

A range of proposals have been made to extend the coverage of the household benefits package of free schemes. These proposals are being kept under review in the context of the objectives of the scheme and budgetary resources.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 136: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his views on increasing the level of payments to younger widows or widowers who do not qualify for free schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4904/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Widows and widowers can qualify for one of a number of different schemes depending on their particular circumstances. The contributory widow's-widower's pension is available to those who satisfy the necessary PRSI contribution conditions, either on their own record or that of the deceased spouse. Those qualifying for this benefit are not subject to any means test.

Those without the necessary PRSI contributions can, if they have qualifying children, receive the one-parent family payment. This is a means tested payment but it does feature a reasonable earnings disregard which is designed to assist with the extra costs those with children face in trying to access training or employment. Up to €146.50 of earnings per week is completely disregarded, while earnings in excess of that and up to €293 per week are assessed at 50%. The upper threshold will increase to €375 from June 2006.

Widows or widowers without qualifying children can apply for the widow's-widower's non-contributory pension. There is no specific earnings disregard associated with this payment but a standard allowance of €7.60 per week is applied to all income. In addition, up to €20,000 in capital is disregarded when means are being assessed.

Increases in the rates of child benefit are also of benefit to widows and widowers with children. Since 1997, the monthly rates of child benefit have been increased significantly. The current rates of child benefit are €150.00 per month for each of the first and second children and €185.00 per month for the third and subsequent children.

Widows and widowers are also entitled to the fuel allowance, back to school clothing and footwear allowance, and other secondary benefits, on the same basis as other social welfare recipients.

The adequacy of payments for widowed people, and for welfare recipients in general, is kept under review and, where appropriate, increases are granted in annual budgets. In budget 2006, widowed people received increases of between €14 and €17 per week or between 9.5% and 11%. This is well ahead of the rate of inflation.

It would be difficult to justify additional supports for widows and widowers, in certain circumstances, without also considering the position of other social welfare recipients who may have similar income support needs.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 137: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if the back to education allowance requirement might be relaxed with a view to catering for increased numbers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4905/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The back to education allowance is a second chance education opportunities programme designed to encourage and facilitate people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the active work force.

As the Deputy may be aware, I reduced the qualifying period for access to the third level option of the scheme to 12 months in the 2005 budget. I also increased the annual cost of education allowance, paid to people on BTEA, from €254 to €400. These changes came into effect from 1 September 2005.

Following an undertaking to the Dáil and the Joint Committee on Social and Family Affairs, I further reduced the qualifying period for access to the third level option to nine months in certain cases. This condition applies to persons who are participating in the national employment action plan, NEAP, process and where a FÁS employment services officer recommends pursuance of a third level course of study as essential to the enhancement of individuals employment prospects. This new condition also came into effect from 1 September 2005.

Furthermore, in the recent budget I announced that time spent in receipt of supplementary welfare allowance can count towards the qualifying period for back to education allowance in circumstances where the person establishes an entitlement to a relevant social welfare payment prior to commencing an approved course of study. This new provision will come into effect from September 2006.

The requirement to be in receipt of a relevant social welfare payment for a minimum period of time has always been a feature of the back to education allowance scheme and is considered necessary in order to ensure that limited resources are targeted at those who are most in need of second chance education. The scheme is intended to assist people with a history of dependence on social welfare and is a recognition of the special difficulties which such persons can face when attempting to equip themselves for the modern labour force.

I am satisfied that, overall, the current arrangements ensure that my Department's back to education allowance scheme continues to support those people who are most distant from the labour market and whose need is greatest, but the situation is being kept under review.