Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 249: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the minimum payment that is issued to one person in the State per month; the average payment that is issued to one person in the State per month; the largest payment that is issued to one person in the State per month; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19705/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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My Department operates a wide range of schemes under which a person may be entitled to receive a payment if they satisfy all of the various conditions for receipt of that payment. The conditions for receipt of a primary weekly payment, such as Disability Allowance or State Pension, typically include experiencing a prescribed contingency, such as unemployment, disability or old age, and satisfying either a means test or social insurance contribution test.

In cases where a person satisfies the general conditions for more than one type of primary weekly payment in general they will be entitled to receive only one primary weekly payment. For example if a person has a disability and is aged 66 years or more, they will not receive both a disability and an old-age payment. However, there are some exceptions to this. For example, a person who has a Widow's Pension and who becomes ill may be entitled to receive a reduced rate of Illness Benefit in addition to her Widow's Pension, if she also satisfies the conditions for receipt of Illness Benefit. Increases in primary weekly payments may be paid in respect of a qualified adult dependant and any qualified child dependants.

In addition to primary weekly payments, a person may be entitled to a monthly child benefit payment or an annual payment such as back to school clothing and footwear allowance, provided they satisfy the conditions for receipt of those payments. In the case of some couples, all payments may be made to one member of the couple while, in the case of others, each member may be personally in receipt some payments but not all (child benefit is normally paid to a mother).

In the light of this and the fact that individual payments are delivered across a range of computer systems, it is not possible to extract the data requested in respect of the largest payment issued to any one person in the State. The average payment varies across the various schemes operated by the Department. The most typical rate paid to people of working age is €188 per week, while the most typical rate paid to people aged 66 years or more is €230.30 per week.

The lowest rate of payment arises in cases where a person is in receipt of a means tested payment, such as Jobseeker's Allowance, and has means assessed against them, for example from part-time employment, spouse income or capital. The lowest rate of entitlement that can arise from the application of means test rules varies, depending on the particular payment type. For example, the lowest rate of payment made under the Jobseeker's Allowance scheme is €1 per week.