Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 188: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of carers in receipt of carer's allowance; the number who have applied in the past year on a monthly basis; the number granted or refused in the same period; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24986/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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There are currently 38,000 persons in receipt of carer's allowance. The information requested by the Deputy regarding carer's allowance applications received and decided in the past year is set out in tabular format as follows.

Some 23,000 applications were received during the period 1st June 2007 to 20th June 2008 and over 19,000 claims were decided during the same period. The number of claims for carers allowance submitted in 2007 was 18,000 compared to 10,700 in 2006 representing an increase of 68%. Some 9,600 new applications for carer's allowance have been received in 2008 to date. The large increase in applications received is mainly due to the introduction of the half rate carer's allowance payment which came into effect from 27th September 2007.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 191: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if adequate provision has been made in budget 2008 to meet the expected cost of rent or mortgage support for the full year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24989/08]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 192: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the total expenditure in respect of mortgage support in each of the past five years; the extent to which this is expected to change to take account of the increased number of people expected to need such support with particular reference to families; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24990/08]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 193: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the total expenditure in respect of rent support in each of the past five years; the extent to which this is expected to change to take account of the increased number of people expected to need such support with particular reference to families; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24991/08]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 194: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the action she proposes to take to address difficulties created for families arising from the economic downturn with particular reference to adjusting rent and mortgage support to meet their requirements; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24992/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 191 to 194, inclusive, together.

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. The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible persons living in private rented accommodation, whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs 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. The supplement assists with the interest portion of the mortgage repayments only.

In recent years, a significant number of people have come to rely on rent supplement for extended periods, including people on local authority housing waiting lists. At 13 June 2008, over 63,000 people were in receipt of a supplement of which almost 32,000 recipients are getting a supplement for 18 months or more. The scheme was not designed to meet long-term ongoing housing needs. One of the measures introduced to address the issue of long-term rent supplementation is the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) which gives local authorities specific responsibility for meeting the long-term housing needs of people receiving rent supplement for eighteen months or more. Almost 13,000 tenants have been transferred from the rent supplement scheme to RAS since 2005.

Significant changes to the means test for rent and mortgage interest supplement were implemented in 2007. Additional provision was made specifically to facilitate people on rent supplement returning to work and those accepted as eligible for accommodation under RAS. These measures are positive steps in assisting tenants in achieving a long-term housing solution for their needs while also increasing the financial return from employment for those returning to work or moving to full-time employment. Expenditure on rent supplement and mortgage interest supplement for the past 5 years is shown in the attached tabular statement. The estimated provisions for the current year are also shown in the statement.

Overall, I am satisfied that the current rent supplement and mortgage interest schemes provide an adequate short-term "safety net" within the overall social welfare system to ensure that people do not suffer hardship due to loss of employment. Nonetheless I intend to keep the schemes under review to ensure that the schemes meet the objective of catering for those who require assistance on a short-term basis while long-term housing needs are dealt with in a more appropriate manner. Developments in relation to current year expenditure are being closely monitored in the context of the Government's framework for reporting on public expenditure.