Written answers
Tuesday, 20 May 2025
Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection
State Pensions
Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal West, Sinn Fein)
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633. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the estimated first-year and full-year cost of increasing State pension payments by €1. [25923/25]
Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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My Department administers several schemes that could be considered State Pension Payments. I have listed below in tabular form the current rates for those pensions and the number of recipients at the end of April 2025.
| Scheme Name | Recipients at end of April 2025 | Current Maximum Weekly Rate | Estimated Yearly Cost of Increasing Payment by €1 per week |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Pension (contributory) | 539,280 | €289.30 | €28m |
| Increase for Qualified Adult on SPC | 45,111 | €259.40 (66 and over) €192.70 (65 and under) | €2.4m |
| State Pension (non-contributory) | 99,340 | €278.00 | €5.2m |
| Increase for Qualified Adult on SPNC | 2,756 | €183.60 | €0.1m |
| Widows, Widowers and Surviving Civil Partners Pension (contributory) | 123,758 | €289.30 (66 and over) €249.50 (66 and under) | €6.4m |
| Widows, Widowers and Surviving Civil Partners Pension (non-contributory) | 976 | €244.00 | €0.05m |
The estimated cost of increasing these payments by €1 per week, without any factoring for a change in the number of recipients, is therefore circa €42.2m per year.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
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