Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 288: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the increased hardship arising from job losses resulting in an inability to meet mortgage or rent repayments and the necessity to favourably review rent or mortgage supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5552/08]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The supplementary welfare allowance scheme (SWA) provides for a weekly or monthly supplement to be paid in respect of rent or mortgage interest to any person in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs. Rent supplements provide short-term assistance with reasonable accommodation costs of eligible persons living in private rented accommodation who are unable to provide for their accommodation costs from their own resources and who do not have accommodation available to them from another source. Similarly, mortgage interest supplement provides short-term income support to eligible people who are unable to meet their mortgage interest repayments in respect of a house which is their sole place of residence.

Payment is normally calculated to ensure that the person, after payment of the rent or mortgage interest has a weekly income equal to the rate of supplementary welfare allowance appropriate to their circumstances, less €13. This €13 represents the minimum contribution which all applicants are required to pay towards rent or mortgage costs from their own resources. These arrangements ensure that tenants and home-owners have a minimally adequate income with which to meet their day-to-day needs after paying their rent or mortgage. Overall, I am satisfied that the current rules in relation to SWA scheme provides an adequate "safety net" within the overall social welfare system to ensure that people do not suffer hardship due to loss of employment.

Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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Question 289: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his views on extending the living alone allowance to include old aged pensioners whose only income is their retirement pension; if he has proposals to address this anomaly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5654/08]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The living alone increase 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 who are under 66 years of age who are living alone and receiving payments under one of a number of invalidity type schemes. While, as outlined, the increase is paid to those receiving invalidity type payments, it is primarily a benefit for those aged 66 or over. Accordingly, there are no plans to extend the payment to people receiving the State Pension (transition) or, indeed, to others who are under 66 years of age receiving other social welfare payments.