Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, United Left)
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50. To ask the Minister for Social Protection her views on the anomaly whereby the spouse of a person who dies while on a community employment scheme does not receive six weeks payment, but the spouse of someone who dies while on other payments does. [17343/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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When a person in receipt of certain social welfare payments dies, their spouse, civil partner or cohabitant may get 6 weeks of this payment after their death. This will be paid at the same rate that the late spouse, civil partner or cohabitant was receiving.

The person may get the 6-week payment if their spouse, civil partner or cohabitant was receiving one of the following payments and it included a payment for them (i.e. an increase for a qualified adult):

- State Pension (Transition);

- State Pension (Non-Contributory) or State Pension (Contributory);

- Pre-Retirement Allowance;

- Jobseeker's Benefit or Jobseeker's Allowance;

- Supplementary Welfare Allowance;

- Illness Benefit;

- Disability Allowance;

- Invalidity Pension;

- Blind Pension;

- Farm Assist;

- Injury Benefit or Incapacity Supplement.

Participants on the Community Employment scheme are in insurable employment and are not considered to be in receipt of a social welfare payment. Accordingly, the 6 weeks payment is not payable.