Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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82. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if there has been an increase in requests for review of means-assessed pensions and other incomes in response to the declining value of sterling; the number of review requests he has received; the backlogs in current application and review processing queues; the outcomes for persons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35712/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Social Assistance payments act as a safety net for people who have insufficient income and who do not qualify for a contributory payment. The use of a means test is to ensure that limited resources are directed to those in greatest need. Payments from the United Kingdom (UK) are assessed as income under current legislation. If the person applying for a Social Assistance payment has a UK pension, it is assessable, together with all other means such as savings and investments, when determining the rate of payment.

There has not been any significant increase in either new applications from persons in receipt of payments from the UK, nor in requests for review of means assessed pensions and other incomes in response to the declining value of sterling. To date c. 2% of persons in receipt of both State Pension non-contributory and a payment from the UK have requested a review of their entitlement. There is no backlog in dealing with such requests.

It is open to any person in receipt of a social assistance payment to request that his/her entitlement be reviewed if they wish. It is important to note, however, that any such review will involve a full reassessment of all of the customer’s means to ensure that the person continues to receive the correct payment in line with their overall entitlement and such reviews cannot of their nature just focus on the income derived from the UK. Therefore the outcome of each review depends on the individual means and circumstances of the person.

Following the outcome of the UK referendum, negotiations on the UK’s future relationship with the EU will take time. In the interim, it is important to stress that all payments made by the Department of Social Protection to entitled persons, including those to recipients who are resident in Britain and Northern Ireland, and payments from the UK to residents in Ireland, will continue to be paid.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.