Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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1045. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of recipients and the level of funding in the past five years paid to recipients of the fuel allowance in tabular form; the number of families the fuel allowance has supported; her planned changes to take account of the increased cost of energy for families; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20311/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Fuel Allowance scheme is a means tested payment to assist pensioners and other long-term social welfare dependent householders with their winter heating costs.  The payment is a contribution towards heating costs; it is not intended to meet these costs in full.  The payment is made at the weekly rate of €33.00; or if preferred, by way of two lump sum payments; and is paid over the winter season.  Only one Fuel Allowance is payable per household.  Those who qualify for the payment do not need to reapply annually.

The table below provides the information as requested by the Deputy.

Expenditure and Fuel Allowance recipients by year 2017-2021

**actual expenditure for 2021 is not yet available

The Government is committed to protecting vulnerable households from the impact of energy costs.  As part of the overall welfare budget package of €600m in increases secured for 2022, I increased the Fuel Allowance payment by €5 per week, effective from Budget night.  I also increased the weekly income threshold for Fuel Allowance by €20, and from September 2022 I am reducing the qualifying period for those in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance or Basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance to access the fuel allowance payment to 12 months. 

Further Government measures were announced to help mitigate the effects of rising energy costs.  As part of these measures totaling over half a billion euro, an additional lump sum payment of €125 was paid to all households in receipt of the fuel allowance payment, at an estimated additional cost of €49m.

As part of the recently announced measures included in the National Energy Security Framework, a further additional lump sum payment of €100 will be paid to all households in receipt of fuel allowance in the last week of the (2021/22) fuel allowance season – a payment equivalent to over 3 weeks additional fuel allowance.  It is planned to make this €100 payment in mid-May.

This means that low-income households will see an increase of 55% in fuel allowance support provided during the 2021/2022 fuel allowance season compared to the previous season.  A recipient household which would have received €735 in fuel season 2020/2021 would see an increase of €404 to €1,139 in fuel allowance payments in fuel season 2021/2022.  When taken in conjunction with the electricity costs emergency benefit payment, due to be paid in April, this household would have received over €600 in additional targeted Government supports over the course of this fuel season - the equivalent of over 18 weeks additional fuel allowance.

My Department also provides discretionary exceptional needs payments, where appropriate, to people who face difficulties in meeting fuel bills.  These payments are not ring-fenced or budget limited as they would be if they were drawn from an earmarked fund, but rather are demand led.  Applications are considered on a case by case basis. 

The provision of any further additional supports would have cost implications and could only be considered while taking account of the overall budgetary context and the availability of financial resources.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.