Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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1488. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 452 of 12 July 2017 and the revised projected inflation figure for 2018 included in the summer economic statement published on 12 July 2017, the rates of all weekly payments; the resulting rates if they were to be increased in line with the revised harmonised index of consumer prices for 2018; and the estimated cost of this increase per scheme identifying the full and partial year effect if relevant, in tabular form. [35199/17]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The information that the Deputy is looking for is detailed in the following table. The costs are based on the 1.2% Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices rate for 2018, forecast in the Department of Finance’s Summer Economic Statement.

The costings listed above include proportionate increases for qualified adults and for those on reduced rates of payment, where relevant. It should also be noted that these costings are subject to change over the coming months in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients for 2018.

Finally, any proposed amendments to the rates of payment must be considered in an overall budgetary context and will have to be consistent with the legal requirements set out in the Fiscal Responsibility Acts 2012 and 2013, and within the context of achieving the targets set for Ireland by the EU rules.