Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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493. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the funding allocated to exceptional needs payments in each of the years 2012 to 2016 and to date in 2017; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50807/17]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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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.

There is no automatic entitlement to a payment. The ENP scheme is demand led and payments are made at the discretion of the officers administering the scheme taking into account the requirements of the legislation and all the relevant circumstances of the case in order to ensure that the payments target those most in need of assistance.

Details of the Revised Estimate allocation and expenditure under the ENP and urgent needs payment (UNP) schemes for 2012 to 2017 are set out in the following tabular statement.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputies.

Revised Estimate Provision and Expenditure for ENP & UNP schemes 2012 to 2017.