Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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88. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the supports in place for people struggling to pay their grocery bills. [24630/23]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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I fully recognise the challenges the increased the cost of living has brought to many people and families in all areas of their lives, including increases in weekly grocery bills. The Government has, since its formation in 2020, provided unprecedented supports to protect people and families, first through the Covid-19 pandemic and now through cost-of-living supports.

In September, I announced the largest Social Protection Budget package in the history of the state with measures worth almost €2.2 billion. This included eight separate additional lump sum payments throughout October, November and December. From the start of January, a wide range of increases came into effect which were announced as part of Budget 2023. This included a €12 across the board increase to weekly rates – the largest increase to weekly rates since the mid-2000s.

A third energy credit was paid in March and delivered an extra €200 to virtually all households in the state.

In addition, a €200 Spring Bonus was paid to all long-term social welfare recipients at the end of April.

I also announced the largest ever expansion in the Fuel Allowance scheme - we had more than 35,000 additional households in receipt of this payment when the scheme ended.

We are providing a continued range of additional supports focusing particularly on families with children over the coming months, targeting Child Benefit, Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance and the School Meals.

Furthermore, the supplementary welfare allowance scheme administered by the Community Welfare Service of my Department is available to provides, where necessary, Additional Needs Payments to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income.

I can assure you that we are keeping the cost of living situation under close review; however, I am confident that the wide range of measures we have introduced is making a real difference in people's lives. Research by the ESRI shows that the combination of a base rate increase with the special one-off measures has effectively cushioned low income families from the impact of inflation and, in fact, that such families have fared better than they would have done if the base social welfare rates had simply increased by the rate of inflation.