Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Question 300: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if any research has been carried out on the excess costs of living alone; the way this relates to the current level of the living alone allowance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21436/10]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Question 301: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if consideration has been given to allowing persons on jobseeker's benefit, jobseeker's allowance or the one-parent family payment to apply for the living alone allowance; the estimated cost of such a change in policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21437/10]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 300 and 301 together.

The European Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) is the main data source for measuring poverty and social exclusion in Ireland. Consistent poverty is the official measurement of poverty in Ireland which measures the percentage of persons below 60 per cent of average income, who are also deprived of goods and services regarded as essential for living in Ireland today, as measured by deprivation indicators. The most recent figures for 2008 show that the level of consistent poverty in Ireland is 4.2 per cent but older people living alone are 4 times less likely to experience consistent poverty than the general population. The level of consistent poverty among older people living alone fell dramatically from 4.1 per cent in 2007 to 0.9 per cent in 2008. Similarly older people living alone were much less likely than the general population to be at risk of poverty using only income as the measure (11 per cent vs. 14.4 per cent).

These reductions represent the success of Government policy in relation to supporting older people. The priority has been to increase personal rates of pension in addition to enhancing the household benefits package which includes TV licence, telephone, electricity/gas and the fuel allowance rather than supplements like the living alone increase. The objective is to use resources to improve the position of all pensioners to the fullest extent possible rather than focusing on particular groups. 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.

The living alone increase is primarily a benefit for aged 66 or over. Accordingly, there are no plans to extend the payment to people receiving other social welfare payments. In addition, some schemes by their nature could not attract a living alone increase as individuals living alone cannot qualify. This would apply to the one-parent family payment which requires that a child must live with the recipient. My Department does not have information available on the living arrangements of individuals on social welfare payments other than those who are in receipt of living alone increase and accordingly it is not possible to cost the proposal outlined by the Deputy.