Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)
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Question 392: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of people who are currently in receipt of fuel allowance. [30461/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Some 264,400 people — 145,800 with basic fuel allowance and 118,600 with smokeless fuel supplement — benefited from the national fuel scheme in 2005 at a cost of €85.4 million. It is estimated that some 274,000 people — 151,000 with basic fuel allowance and 123,000 with smokeless fuel supplement — will benefit in 2006 at an estimated annual cost €125.1 million.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 393: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs when the value of the living alone allowance was last increased; the rise in the consumer price index since that increase; and his view on the future role of this allowance. [30462/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The living alone allowance or living alone increase as it is now known, is an additional payment of €7.70 per week made to people aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments and who are living alone. It is also available to people under 66 years of age who are living alone and who receive payments under one of a number of invalidity type schemes. The increase is intended as a contribution towards the additional costs people face when they live alone.

The payment was last increased in 1996. From November 1996 to August 2006, the consumer price index rose by 38.1%. The living alone increase is a targeted measure aimed at a particular group of pensioners. The policy in relation to support for pensioners has been, for many years, to give priority to increasing the personal rates of pension rather than focusing on payments such as the living alone increase. This approach ensures that resources are used to improve the position of all pensioners.

The Government is committed to increasing the level of the basic state pension to €200 per week by 2007. Further significant progress towards achieving this target was made in budget 2006, which provided for increases in pensions of up to €14 and €16 per week. The maximum rate of the state pension (contributory), formally the old age contributory pension is now €193.30 per week with the maximum non-contributory pension paid at €182 per week.

Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)
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Question 394: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the length of time it is taking to process carer's allowance applications, carer's benefit applications, respite care grants and carer's allowance appeals; and if he will provide additional staff in his Department and the appeals office to ensure these applications are dealt with expeditiously. [30467/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is committed to providing a quality customer service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are issued as expeditiously as possible having regard to the relevant eligibility conditions.

Entitlement to carer's allowance is based on the applicant satisfying medical, means and residency conditions. Entitlement to carer's benefit is based on the applicant satisfying medical, PRSI contributions, and employment and residency conditions.

Budget 2005 extended entitlement to the respite care grant to all full time carers irrespective of means or contribution record but subject to certain conditions regarding the provision of full time care and attention. The grant in respect of 2006 is payable to people who meet the qualifying conditions on Thursday 1 June and is payable on or as soon as practicable after that date.

In determining entitlement to carer's allowance, carer's benefit or the respite care grant there are, in certain cases, unavoidable time lags involved in making the necessary investigations and enquiries to enable correct decisions to be made.

Respite care grant has been paid to all eligible people who are in receipt of carer's allowance or carer's benefit. Respite care grant has also been paid to all those who received the grant in 2005 and who are eligible for the 2006 grant. Taken together, this amounts to over 30,000 cases.

Some 900 cases remain to be finalised. These are new claims received from people who are not in receipt of carer's allowance or benefit and who did not receive the respite care grant in 2005. The average time for deciding these claims is currently eight weeks.

The average time for deciding an application for receipt of carer's allowance and carer's benefit is currently 9.1 weeks and eight weeks respectively, although in many cases claims are processed within a far shorter timeframe. The average length of time taken to deal with carer's allowance appeals by the social welfare appeals office in 2005 was 23 weeks. If allowance is made for the 25% most protracted cases, the average time falls to eight weeks.

The processing time for appeals covers all phases of the appeal process including the submission by my Department of its comments on the grounds for the appeal, further advice by the Department's medical assessor in certain cases and the holding of oral hearings.

Circumstances can arise, normally outside the control of the Social Welfare Appeals Office, which can have the effect of unduly prolonging the time taken to process appeals. The staff and other resources available to my Department must be deployed to ensure good customer service, to prevent fraud and abuse of the schemes and to achieve value for money. My Department is engaged in an ongoing process to ensure that available resources are prioritised to the greatest extent possible on front line service delivery and to ensure that the best possible standard of response is provided across the range of schemes and services.

Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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Question 395: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will extend the qualifying categories of persons in need of companion passes to include people who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30468/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The free travel scheme is available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over. All carers in receipt of carer's allowance and carers of people in receipt of constant attendance or prescribed relative's allowance, regardless of their age, receive a free travel pass. It is also available to people under age 66 who are in receipt of certain disability type welfare payments, such as disability allowance, invalidity pension and blind person's pension. People resident in the State who are in receipt of a social security invalidity or disability payment from a country covered by EU regulations, or from a country with which Ireland has a bilateral social security agreement, and who have been in receipt of this payment for at least 12 months, are also eligible for free travel.

The free travel companion pass entitles the pass holder to have any one person, aged 16 years or over, to accompany him/her free of charge when travelling. Such companion passes are available to persons who qualify for free travel and who, on account of their disability, are unable to travel alone. These eligible for a companion pass include people who are receiving full-time care and attention from someone who is in receipt of a carer's allowance; people aged 75 years or over, who are medically unfit to travel unaccompanied; people who are blind or severely visually impaired; and people in receipt of certain social welfare type illness or disability payments.

Further extensions to the free travel scheme could only be considered in a budgetary context and taking account of the financial and other needs of those not covered by the existing arrangements.

Gerard Murphy (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Question 396: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the situation regarding an application for disability allowance for a person (details supplied) in County Cork. [30531/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The person concerned applied for disability allowance on 10 April 2006. The deciding officer disallowed the claim on 30 June 2006 on the grounds that the person's means exceeded the means limits for that scheme. The means in question are derived from farming, where there is a disregard of the first €580 of weekly income for a married couple in carers cases, while claimants for disability allowance are assessed with half the net income.

She appealed against this decision to the social welfare appeals office. Having considered all of the available evidence, the Appeals Officer disallowed her appeal on 28 September 2006 and she was notified of the decision on that date.

Under social welfare legislation decisions in relation to claims must be made by deciding officers and appeals officers. These officers are statutorily appointed and I have no role in regard to making such decisions.

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 397: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the travel restrictions in place for free travel pass holders in comparison to other public transport users; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30686/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I recently announced that all time based restrictions on travel on public transport services for holders of free travel passes were officially lifted with effect from 25 September 2006. This has removed morning and evening peak-times restrictions for holders of free travel passes, which have been in existence for almost 40 years.

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 398: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his plans to expand the free travel scheme to allow free travel pass holders to purchase return train tickets; the reason free travel pass holders are not allowed return tickets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30687/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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It is CIE policy to restrict free travel pass holders to day return tickets only, when travelling by train. Where a return journey is not made on the same day CIE policy dictates that a single journey ticket is required for each journey, while any change in this policy is a matter for CIE, the issue is being taken up by my officials.