Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 251: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the steps he has taken to ensure that non-contributory old age pensioners who avail of the disregard incentive on their pension to take up employment worth €200 per week do not as a result loose secondary benefits such as fuel allowance. [43310/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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From January 2007 persons in receipt of state pension (non contributory) can also augment their income by up to €200 per week (or €10,400 annually) in earnings from insurable employment and still maintain their pension entitlements in addition to their entitlement to fuel allowance. This new disregard, relating to earnings from employment, is an incentive to facilitate state pension (non-contributory) recipients who wish to continue working or to re-enter the workforce. This income limit was increased to €200 per week in Budget 2007.

Eligibility to the fuel allowance scheme is subject to means and other conditions. The main conditions that apply to the fuel allowance scheme are that a person must be in receipt of a qualifying payment, must satisfy a means test and must either be living alone or with a qualifying dependant.

People who qualify for means-tested pensions or allowances such as state pension (non-contributory), long-term jobseeker's assistance or one-parent family payment do not have to undergo a further means test to qualify for fuel allowance. The majority of people who receive fuel allowances qualify because they satisfy the relevant means test for their primary weekly payment. This ensures that people who avail of the disregard incentive on their own state pension (Non-Contributory) to take up employment worth EUR 200 per week do not lose fuel allowance.

In the case of recipients of contributory pensions, any earnings from insurable employment and/or occupational pensions are normally regarded as means for the purpose of determining an individual's entitlement to a fuel allowance. From January 2007 a person may have a combined household income of up to €100 per week, or savings/investments of up to €58,000, over and above the maximum rate of state pension (contributory) and still qualify for fuel allowance. This income limit was increased to €100 per week in Budget 2007.

In Budget 2007, I have also provided for an increase in the rate of fuel allowance of €4 from €14 to €18 (€21.90 in designated smokeless areas) in addition to the increase in the income thresholds.