Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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245. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason her Department and Tús do not inform employment support scheme participants of their entitlement to fuel allowance prior to entering such a scheme in view of the fact that, due to a technicality, persons are not given their fuel allowance entitlement if they apply for it after they have started on such a scheme (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47383/17]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The fuel allowance is a payment of €22.50 per week from October to April, to some 376,000 low income households to assist them with their energy costs. The allowance represents a contribution towards the energy costs of a household. It is not intended to meet those costs in full. Only one allowance is paid per household.

The fuel allowance scheme is widely advertised. To qualify for a fuel allowance, a jobseeker must satisfy a number of conditions, including being in receipt of jobseeker’s allowance for at least 391 days (time spent on jobseeker's benefit can make up the 391 days). It should be noted that free fuel application forms are issued automatically to jobseekers who reach 391 days of unemployment. Accordingly, the onus is on a jobseeker to apply for the fuel allowance if they consider themselves eligible. Further information on eligibility is available on www.welfare.ie.

Participants on Tús and other employment support schemes can be paid the fuel allowance where they applied for and were awarded the allowance prior to commencing on the scheme and where they satisfy or continue to satisfy the conditions. I would like to reiterate that claimants moving to Tús cannot accrue entitlement to the fuel allowance while on the scheme e.g. a person moving from jobseeker’s allowance with less than 391 days.

However, if there is a change in circumstances e.g. where the Tús participant has an underlying entitlement to fuel allowance, but is not in receipt of the allowance because another member of the household was receiving it, if the fuel recipient is no longer residing at the address, then it is open to the Tús participant to apply for the fuel allowance. In these circumstances, the fuel entitlement can be reviewed and awarded provided the participant satisfies all conditions for receipt of fuel allowance.

The guidelines for the fuel allowance scheme are kept under review. Any decision to extend the eligibility criteria for fuel allowance to allow persons on Tús to accrue entitlement to the allowance while on the scheme would have to be considered in the context of overall budgetary negotiations.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.