Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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318. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if he has considered increasing income thresholds for eligibility for social protection payments given the commitment in the programme for Government to increase the minimum wage to €10.50 per hour over the next five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15877/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Department operates a range of means tested social assistance schemes where, in order to qualify for the payment, the claimant must satisfy a means test which takes into account the assets and income (including earnings) of the claimant and his or her spouse/partner. The means test for earnings includes tapering arrangements, whereby a certain proportion of earnings are disregarded in order to provide a financial incentive to work. For instance, for jobseeker’s allowance recipients, the first €60 of earnings is disregarded (earned over a maximum of three days) and 60% of the remainder is assessed as means. Similarly, for one-parent family allowance and jobseeker’s transition recipients, the first €90 of earnings is disregarded and 50% of the remainder is assessed as means.

Increases in the minimum wage result in an overall financial gain for means-tested social welfare recipients who are working and on the minimum wage. In Budget 2016, the minimum wage increased from €8.65 to €9.15 per hour. Two other significant changes were introduced in the Budget which supported the beneficiaries of this increase. The Family Income Supplement income thresholds were increased by €5 per week for families with one child and by €10 per week for families with two or more children. In addition, a PRSI credit was introduced and benefits all workers earning between €352 and €424 per week including minimum wage workers whose weekly income is in this range. Workers earning less than €352 per week continue to be exempt for making an employee PRSI contribution.

Any changes to the earnings disregards or the income thresholds of social welfare schemes would have cost implications and would have to be considered in the overall policy and budgetary context.