Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)
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1428. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the supports available for an older person who needs a new roof but does not have insurance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19614/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Supports from my Department are not generally intended to cover circumstances where responsibility rests with another Government Department or Agency. Responsibility in relation to supports for housing adaptions and or repairs, for the purposes of rendering a house more suitable for the accommodation needs of an older person, including any shortfalls in funding, is a matter for my colleague in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and the relevant Local Authority. Information on available housing supports can be found at www.gov.ie under the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

The Age Friendly Ireland Shared Service has also been established in each Local Authority area to support older adults across Ireland. The person concerned should contact their local Age Friendly Technical Advisor, who is in place to provide specialist housing advice to older members of the public. Local Age-friendly programmes work to support and assist older adults on options and access to key services.

However, where a person can confirm that they do not meet the eligibility criteria and have fully explored all other Housing Scheme supports and any other options available, they can apply to my department to determine if they meet the eligibility criteria for an Additional Needs Payment (ANP) to meet their need.

Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) scheme, my Department may make an ANP to help meet essential expenditure which an eligible person could not reasonably be expected to meet from their weekly income or other personal and household resources. This is an overarching term used to refer to Exceptional Needs Payments (ENPs) and Urgent Needs Payments (UNPs), and certain supplements to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from a person’s own resources, and which are deemed to be necessary. ANPs are administered by Designated Persons (DPs) in the Community Welfare Service (CWS) considering the requirements of the legislation and all the relevant circumstances.

All cases are considered on a case-by-case basis based on the need presenting. This entails an assessment, as opposed to a specific means test, of an applicant’s weekly household income, their savings and investments, their outgoings and the type of assistance needed. The assessment will also include any income that their spouse, civil partner, or cohabitant has. As part of the application process, a person must provide personal, financial, household, and other information in support of their claim to determine eligibility and to establish a need as considered necessary.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1429. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to examine the case of a person (details supplied); and the current status of this specific carer’s allowance case. [19688/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Carer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that, as a result, they require that level of care.

An application for CA was received from the person concerned on 13 December 2024.

It is a condition for receipt of CA that every claimant shall furnish such certificates, documents, information and evidence as may be required for the purposes of deciding their claim.

Additional information in relation to the person’s application was requested by a Deciding Officer (DO) on 17 December 2024. The person concerned failed to provide all the requested information and the claim was disallowed as it was not possible to determine that the person concerned satisfied the necessary conditions for receipt of CA.

The person concerned was notified of this decision on 05 February 2025. They were also notified of their right to have the decision reviewed (where further information is available) or to appeal the decision to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

A review was initiated on foot of correspondence received and the person concerned was awarded CA from 19 December 2024. They were notified of this decision on 15 April 2025 and the first payment issued to their nominated post office on 24 April 2025.

I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.