Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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1074. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 116 of 27 February 2025, if he will provide a breakdown of the number of applications received under the humanitarian assistance scheme by county in the aftermath of Storm Éowyn to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12648/25]

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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1075. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 116 of 27 February 2025, if he will provide a breakdown of payments under the humanitarian assistance scheme by county in the aftermath of Storm Éowyn to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12649/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1074 and 1075 together.

The Humanitarian Assistance Scheme (HAS), administered by my department through the Community Welfare Service, was activated on the 23rd January 2025 to assist householders affected across the country by Storm Éowyn.

Humanitarian assistance is available in three stages.

Stage 1 of the HAS is available to people while they are directly impacted by the storm. It targets people who need immediate supports.

This stage of humanitarian assistance is to help people with the essentials of life – food, water, shelter and warmth.

Stage 2 support generally involves the replacement of white goods, basic furniture items and other essential household items after a severe weather event.

Stage 3 humanitarian support helps to make a person’s accommodation habitable again in the aftermath of a severe weather event. It generally includes funding for work such as plastering, dry-lining, relaying of floors, electrical re-wiring and painting.

Up to 14 March 2025, just under 66,900 HAS applications have been received. 22,872 Stage 1 claims have been awarded with a total of over €5.2 million being paid in respect of Storm Éowyn related claims.

Stages 2 and 3 of the HAS remain open and the Department continues to currently accept applications. I encourage people who were affected to submit their application for these Stages.

A breakdown by county of applications received and payments made under Stage 1 is as follows:

Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)
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1076. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he will provide clarity on the rules of eligibility and the criteria required to qualify for the humanitarian assistance scheme in light of the impact of Storm Éowyn; if receipts are required for claims under the scheme; the reasons for the significant disparity in payment amounts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12695/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Humanitarian Assistance Scheme, administered by my department through the local Community Welfare Service, was activated on the 23rd January 2025 to assist householders affected across the country by Storm Éowyn.

Up to 13th March 2025, just under 22,900 claims have been awarded with a total of over €5.2 million being paid in respect of Storm Éowyn related claims. The average payment amount is €228.96; however, the amount a person receives depends on the eligible expenditure they incurred.

The Humanitarian Assistance Scheme is operated in 3 stages. Stage 1 of the scheme is to address hardship in the immediate aftermath of a severe weather event and provides emergency support payments to cover food and other essential costs. This stage is to help people with the essentials of life – food, water, shelter, and warmth.

Stage 1 payments made under the scheme do not pay for damage that is normally expected to be covered by insurance policies. The majority of payments made to people to date were to meet the additional cost of feeding their families in the immediate aftermath of the storm where people remained without power and/or water.

Payments were also made to people to meet the cost of alternative accommodation. Where someone didn’t have money to pay up front, the department supported alternative arrangements. The largest payment amounts have been paid in respect of accommodation costs.

Receipts for some expenditure incurred, for example accommodation costs, are requested in order to apply a reasonable and fair approach in determining the level of support required to meet the persons essential needs. Receipts are not required where the application is for additional food costs.

A person seeking a review of a decision should write to: SWA Central Review Officer, PO box 700, Dublin 22. They should set out the reason why they believe they have an entitlement to a payment for example for accommodation, or additional food costs, while their power was out. They should include as much information as possible.

Given the significant number of households affected by Storm Éowyn and to provide clarity on the scheme, I issued a detailed information note recently to members of the Oireachtas outlining the scope and purpose of the scheme.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.