Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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785. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the cost of increasing the weekly payment to adults in direct provision to €50; the cost of increasing the payments for children to the same rates as those for the qualified child increases for children under 12 and over 12 years of age respectively; the rates if it remained linked to the original ratio with supplementary welfare allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22592/20]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Applicants for International Protection accommodated under the system of Direct Provision operated by the International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS) of the Department of Justice and Equality are provided with full board accommodation and other facilities/services.

My department administers the daily expenses allowance (DEA) which is paid to protection applicants who live in the direct provision system.

The Government has provided €13.1 million for the allowance in 2020. The weekly rates of payment were increased in Budget 2019 from €21.60 per adult and per child to €38.80 per adult and to €29.80 per child. There are approximately 4,670 adults and 1,950 children residing in the system of direct provision in respect of whom daily expenses allowance is being paid.

The full year additional cost of increasing the weekly rate of payment for adults to €50 would be €2.7 million.

The current rates of payment for an increase for a qualified child for social welfare payments are €36 for children aged under 12 and €40 for children aged 12 and over. The full year additional cost of increasing the rate of payment for daily expenses allowance for all children to €36 would be €629,000, and to €40 would be €1 million. The age breakdown of the children in respect of whom daily expenses allowance is paid is not available. If it is estimated that half the children are under 12 years and half are 12 and over then the cost to increase the child rate of daily expenses to the social welfare rates is €831,000.

Any increases to the rate of daily expenses allowance would have to be approved by Government and considered in a budgetary context.