Mark Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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1043. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the estimated cost of introducing a €50 weekly cost of disability payment to all recipients of disability-related social protection payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11907/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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This government is committed to improving outcomes for disabled people and recognise that they can face significant additional costs in their daily lives. As a result, Budget 2025 brought forward an extensive range of cost of living measures to support people with disabilities. These included cost of living lump sum payments, bonus double payments, increases to the maximum personal rate of weekly disability payments and child support payments.

The long-term disability income supports in my Department are Disability Allowance, Blind Pension, Invalidity Pension and Partial Capacity Benefit. These schemes have a combined estimated expenditure for 2025 of €3.24bn in respect of almost 228,000 recipients.

Introducing a €50 weekly cost of disability payment to all recipients of a long-term disability income support based on current figures would cost an additional €592.8 million annually.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.