Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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720. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he will address concerns raised in correspondence (details supplied) regarding the impact of the withdrawal of support payments on persons with a disability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63368/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Government recognises the significant additional costs that disabled people can face in their daily lives and is committed improving outcomes for disabled people by introducing permanent measures.

That is why the Programme for Government includes a range of commitments to support disabled people. Our Programme for Government commitments will be advanced over the lifetime of the Government, having regard to the overall policy and budgetary context.

Not all of the matters covered in the details supplied relate to my Department. For example, the one-off electricity credits provided over the past few years are a matter for my colleagues the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment.

In Budget 2026, I provided for a €1.15 billion package of new social protection measures.

Government has been very clear that there would be no once-off measures in this year’s Budget. We are at the start of a five-year programme for Government and not everything can be done in year one.

However, my Department's Budget 2026 package contained significant targeted measures to support disabled people. These measures include:

• A €10 increase in the weekly rates of payment, bringing the personal rates of payment to €254 per week from January;
• A Christmas bonus double payment to all persons getting a long-term disability payment, to be paid in December 2025;
• The highest ever increases in the Child Support Payment – an increase of €16 to €78 for children aged 12 or over, and of €8 to €58 for children under 12
• A €5 increase in the Fuel Allowance, bring it to €38 per week from January 2026;
• People moving from Disability Allowance or Blind Pension to take up work will be able to retain their Fuel Allowance payment for five years.
• People getting Disability Allowance or Blind Pension who have children will be eligible for Back to Work Family Dividend when taking up employment and moving off those payments.
• Expansion of the Wage Subsidy Scheme to people who acquire a disability while in employment and to those who transfer from Invalidity Pension to Partial Capacity Benefit, and increasing the rates paid from April.

• Increase the Earnings Disregard for Carer’s Allowance by €375 to €1,000 for a single person and by €750 to €2,000 for a couple from July 2026.
• The income limit for Carer’s Benefit will increase by €375 to €1,000 per week from July 2026.
• €20 increase in the monthly Domiciliary Care Allowance payment bringing the payment to €380 per month from January.