Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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508. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of applications made for exceptional needs payments between January 2014 and December 2016; the number and percentage of those applications which were successful; the total number of such applications between January 2014 and December 2016 which related to assistance with exceptional needs due to serious illness; and the number and percentage of those applications which were successful. [13436/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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509. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the number of applications between January 2014 and December 2016 which related to assistance with funeral, burial or cremation costs; and the number and percentage of those applications which were successful. [13440/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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510. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the total amount paid in relation to all exceptional needs payments approved between January 2014 and December 2016 relating to assistance with exceptional needs due to serious illness. [13438/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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511. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the total amount paid in relation to all exceptional needs payments approved between January 2014 and December 2016 relating to assistance with exceptional needs due to funeral, burial or cremation costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13439/17]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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540. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the total amount paid in relation to all exceptional needs payments approved between January 2014 and December 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13680/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 508 to 511, inclusive, and 540 together.

Under the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, the Department may make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off and unforeseen expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. The Government has provided €31.5 million for exceptional needs payments (ENPs) and urgent needs payments (UNPs) in 2017.

Details of the number of payments and expenditure under the ENP scheme for the years 2014 to 2016 are set out in the attached tabular statement. Statistics are maintained relating to payments that issue under the ENP scheme, however they are not maintained on the number of applications or the outcome of those applications. The statistics do not provide information on whether the exceptional need has arisen due to serious illness.

An application can be made under the ENP scheme for assistance with funeral and burial expenses where there is an inability to pay these costs, in part or in full, by the family of the deceased person without causing hardship. From January 2014 to end of December 2016, over 8,900 payments with a value of some €14.7 million have been made in respect of funeral and burial costs.

Any persons who consider that they have an entitlement to an ENP under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme should contact the Department. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Number of Payments and Expenditure under Exceptional and Urgent Needs Payment schemes in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

*Provisional Outturn