Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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197. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of women who received supplementary welfare allowance due to ineligibility for maternity benefit in the years 2011 to 2014, inclusive, and the first half of 2015. [31128/15]

Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants. The main purpose of the scheme is to provide immediate and flexible assistance for those in need who do not qualify for payment under other State schemes. The Government has provided over €70 million for basic supplementary welfare allowance in 2015. There are currently approximately 16,800 basic supplementary welfare allowance recipients.

Where an individual does not meet the conditions to qualify for maternity benefit, they may be eligible for a payment under the SWA scheme. Statistics are not maintained in respect of the number of claims for SWA that relate to customers who did not qualify for maternity benefit.