Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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227. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the extent to which exceptional needs payments remain available to applicants in difficult circumstances that they had not anticipated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19496/20]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, the Department may make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. An urgent needs payment (UNP) may be made to persons who may not normally qualify for supplementary welfare allowance but who have an urgent need which they cannot meet from their own resources or where an alternative is not available at that time. Government has provided €44.2 million for the exceptional and urgent needs schemes in 2020.

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.

Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to an ENP should contact the Department's Community Welfare Service. The Department has established an Income Support Line - 1890 800 024 – which can be used by customers at this time to contact the Department. Staff can advise them of how to make an application for assistance from the Department.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.