Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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203. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of applications for an urgent needs payments in Kerry, by reason, in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and to date in 2025, respectively, in tabular form. [8531/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, my department may make Additional Needs Payments to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to Exceptional and Urgent Needs Payments, and certain supplements.

Table 1 shows the number of Additional Need Payment applications and those of which were Urgent Needs Payments, for County Kerry for 2022 to 2024. Urgent Needs Payments are not classified by a reason. Statistics for 2025 are not available as they are prepared and published on a quarterly basis. The reporting of the scheme was revised in 2022 to extract more complete information. Statistics on the number of Additional Needs Payments applications received are not available for 2021; however there were 1,497 Additional Needs Payments awarded in County Kerry that year, of which 14 were Urgent Needs Payments.

Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to an additional needs payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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204. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection for social protection to report on the rural social scheme; how many people access this scheme per county; what is the level of payment, broken down per county, in each of the years 2020 to 2024 and to date in 2025, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8532/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Rural Social Scheme (RSS) is an income support scheme that provides part-time employment opportunities for farmers and fishers who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments and who are underemployed in their primary occupation.

The RSS is delivered by a network of 36 local development companies and Údarás na Gaeltachta, known collectively as implementing bodies (IBs). It is a demand-led scheme and people who wish to participate apply directly to the IB that delivers the scheme in their area.

Table 1 below outlines the number of paid RSS participants funded during the period 2020- 2025  by county address of the placement provider.

Table 2 below outlines payroll costs for RSS participants by county address of the placement provider.

I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.