Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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Question 428: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his proposals to disregard savings in SSIAs when assessing eligibility for non-contributory old age pension; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6037/07]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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In assessing means for social assistance purposes account is taken of any cash income the person may have, together with the value of capital and property (except the home). Amounts held in Special Savings Investment Accounts are treated in the same manner as other capital.

In 2005 the amount of capital disregarded for means test purposes for all schemes (except supplementary welfare allowance) was increased from €12,694.38 to €20,000, an increase of over €7,300. The enhanced disregard applies to all capital regardless of where it is held, be it in an SSIA, a Credit Union, with An Post or any other account with a bank or other financial institution. In October 2006, the new State Pension Non-Contributory was introduced. The new pension replaced the Old Age Non-Contributory Pension and, for recipients aged 66 and over, Blind Pension, Widow/er's Pension, One Parent Family Payment, Deserted Wife's Allowance and Prisoner's Wife's Allowance.

All these schemes currently featured a common means disregard of €7.60 per week, which applied to means from all sources, including those derived from capital. This disregard was increased to €20 per week from September 2006 and further increased to €30 per week with effect from January last. The new capital assessment arrangements introduced in 2005, combined with other means disregard improvements introduced in 2006 and 2007 for the State Pension Non-Contributory, mean that a single non-contributory pensioner, with no other means, can have capital of up to €40,000 and still qualify for a pension at the maximum rate. This figure is doubled in the case of a pensioner couple. These arrangements were designed to ensure that social welfare means testing arrangements do not act as a disincentive to claimants to become savers or to penalise those who have been regular savers in the past.