Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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45. To ask the Minister for Social Protection her views on changing the situation where only the person in direct receipt of a social welfare payment receives an increase of €10 once they turn 80 years of age, but a qualified adult on apayment is not eligible for the same increase; her views that this is extremely unfair on those persons affected; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4073/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The over 80 allowance is an additional payment of €10 per week, automatically paid to recipients of State pension on attaining 80 years of age. It is one of a number of allowances payable on claims to payments such as the State pension contributory, which is paid in respect of people who have paid PRSI prior to pension age.

Another of these allowances, namely the Qualified Adult Payment made in respect of spouses and civil partners, is normally paid where the pensioner has a spouse or civil partner who is financially dependent on them, and who does not have enough contributions to claim a maximum rate State pension contributory in his/her own right. In most cases, such couples have additional income or means above their State pension, as otherwise they would obtain a higher payment by the spouse making a claim to the State pension (non-contributory), which is means-tested and has a maximum personal rate of €219 weekly (plus additional allowances, such as the over-80 allowance, where applicable).

There are some 7,750 qualified adults on contributory pensions who are at least 80 years of age, although this is expected to increase in the coming years. The cost of extending the full allowance to both spouses on such claims (which would effectively double the allowance for claims where both spouses are over 80) would be over €4 million per annum.

The overall concern of the Government in recent budgets has been to protect the primary weekly social welfare rates. Maintaining the rate of the State pension and other core payments is critical in protecting people from poverty. Any proposals to extend the over 80 allowance would have to be considered in a budgetary context