Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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733. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to conduct a full review of the effects Budget 2026 will have on those with a disability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63846/25]

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.

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

This included a general rate increase of €10 across social welfare schemes from January 2026, with proportionate increases for those on reduced rates and Qualified Adults. This will bring the maximum personal rate of Disability Allowance to €254 per week from January 2026, a 4.1% increase when consumer prices have increased by 2.7% over the 12 months to September 2025, according to data from the Central Statistics Office.

In Budget 2026 we also provided for 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.

In addition, the rate of Fuel Allowance will increase by €5 from €33 to €38 per week from January 2026. This will provide an additional €140 during the annual fuel allowance season which will help to offset the impact of increasing energy costs.

Budget 2026 also contained other significant targeted measures to support disabled people. These measures include:

• A Christmas bonus double payment to all persons getting a long-term disability payment, to be paid in December 2025.
• 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.
• The Government allocated €3.8 billion to the Department of Children, Disability and Equality for disability services in 2026, including funding for Community Based Specialist Disability Services to ensure people with disabilities receive the right support, at the right time, in the right place. This represents a 20% increase year on year and represents an overall increase since 2020 of €1.8 billion.

• 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.

My Department will publish a social impact assessment of Budget 2026, with distributional analysis of the measures in this Budget.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.