Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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609. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of applications made for domiciliary care allowance in Cork to date in 2025; the number refused; and the number subsequently approved on appeal. [66233/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The tables below detail the counts of actions on claims and outcomes on appeals for Domiciliary Care Allowance in 2025. Statistics on claim processing are collated at scheme level, and it is not possible to provide breakdowns by individual claim characteristics such as county.

Table 1. Count of registrations, awards and disallowances for Domiciliary Care Allowance, 2025.

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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610. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of applications for carer’s allowance in Cork in 2025 refused because of income above the means test threshold. [66234/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Statistics on claim processing are collated at scheme level, and it is not possible to provide breakdowns by individual claim characteristics such as county or disallowance reason. The number of registered, awarded and disallowed Carer's Allowance claims to end October 2025 is shown in the table below.

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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611. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of urgent needs applications received, by category, to date in 2025; the number approved; and the average processing time. [66235/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to exceptional and urgent needs payments, and certain supplements. These payments are available through our Community Welfare Officers.

Up to the end of September 2025, there were 94,927 applications received for Additional Need Payments of which 1,146 were for Urgent Needs Payments: 48,719 Additional Needs payments were approved in the same period, of which 822 were for Urgent Needs Payments. Urgent Needs Payments are not classified by a category.

Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to an additional needs payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

John Clendennen (Offaly, Fine Gael)
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612. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of persons who have claimed the benefit payment for 65-years-olds, in each of the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [66257/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Jobseekers Benefit Payment for 65-Year-Olds was introduced in February 2021. The number of recipients of the payment as of the end of each year from 2021 to 2024, along with the number of recipients as of the end of October 2025 are set out in the table below.