Social welfare Ireland: Major changes to scheme with thousands to receive higher payment
Major changes were implemented to the Carer's Allowance this week that will make thousands of recipients eligible to receive higher rates of payment.
The changes to the scheme will also mean more Carers can now avail of Carer's Allowance. The weekly income disregard for Carer's Allowance is now increased by €175 to €625 per week for single carers, and by €350 to €1,250 per week for a couple.
The changes announced mean that 5,280 carers will receive an increase in their Carer's Allowance payment from this week. Meanwhile, the Carer's Benefit income limit will also increase from €450 to €625.
Announcing the introduction of the changes today, Minister Calleary said: 'I am delighted to announce these significant increases to the weekly income disregards for Carer's Allowance.
"One of the areas that carers have raised with me regularly is the Carer's means test. The changes I am announcing today will make the scheme more accessible to people who previously did not qualify.
"The increase in the disregards also mean that 5,280 current recipients will receive a higher payment from today. Consequently, 99% of existing Carer's Allowance recipients will now get the full rate of their entitlement.
"These means test improvements are in addition to changes made to the Carer's Support Grant, which was increased to €2,000, its highest ever level, and paid to 138,000 carers in June.
"The Programme for Government commits to significantly increase the income disregards for Carer's Allowance in each Budget with a view to phasing out the means test during the lifetime of the Government. The changes I am announcing today represent a significant step forward towards reaching this commitment.'
Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
4 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Students in line for permanent fee cut as Coalition parties move on to budget battle over welfare payments
The Sunday Independent can also reveal Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are on a collision course over welfare in the budget talks, after the first major row last week, on college fees. Further and Higher Education Minister James Lawless will now push for budget measures to reduce the €3,000 annual fees for college students by several hundred euro permanently. Students will also be in line for more targeted measures, with disadvantaged students set to get greater support with paying their college fees. Permanent cuts to college fees will be seen as a win for Fine Gael, after the party clashed with its coalition partner last week after Fianna Fáil minister Mr Lawless initially poured cold water on the prospect of reducing fees. In previous budgets, college fees fell by €1,000 due to a temporary subsidy introduced in cost-of-living packages. However, the Government had signalled there would be no cost-of-living supports in Budget 2026, and that they would also end the €250 energy credit to help reduce household bills. This weekend, Mr Lawless insisted he would seek 'discounts to the student contribution fee'. 'I am going into the budget negotiations this autumn seeking the very best possible outcome for students and their families, of course by seeking discounts to the student contribution fee, and in line with our Programme for Government commitments, but also by examining complementary, targeted measures which can be very impactful for cohorts like larger families or the 'squeezed middle',' he said. The Kildare North TD also hit out at Tánaiste Simon Harris, by saying families have faced 'uncertainty' in recent years as 'support schemes were, by design, temporary and not guaranteed year-on-year'. I feel it's important that I'm straight with people Mr Harris had cut fees on a temporary basis when he was further and higher education minister, but these were not put on a permanent footing. 'I feel it's important that I'm straight with people, and that whatever I do in this budget is there to stay — repeatable, costed and sustainable,' Mr Lawless said. He also told Sinn Féin TD Donna McGettigan, the party's spokesperson on further and higher education, that the Government is 'committed to reducing the student contribution fee over the lifetime of the Government, in a financially sustainable manner'. Mr Lawless called on Sinn Féin to provide a 'costed, evidence-based appraisal', prompting Sinn Féin to accuse the minister of being 'tone deaf'. The latest Sunday Independent/ Ireland Thinks poll shows most people believe cuts to student fees should apply to all students and not just those on lower incomes. Most people also believe the Government should cut fees further after previously cutting them by €1,000. But Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are set to clash on weekly welfare hikes for the unemployed, with Fine Gael believing people who 'refuse' to work should not be 'rewarded'. The party instead wants lower increases — or none at all — for Jobseeker's Allowance, with higher rates for pensioners and the disabled. I've never been into the characterisation of people on welfare However, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he does not like 'drawing distinctions'. 'I've never been into the characterisation of people on welfare. I've never been into those politics,' he said. The Taoiseach instead spoke about 'turning the dial' on child poverty. 'We do have to make priorities. In terms of how we allocate, my view is that we have, over the last two years, committed to doing something significant on child poverty, to turn the dial around on child poverty — and that's where I would like to see a targeted set of measures emanating from the Department of Social Protection,' he added. His comments stand in stark contrast to those of Mr Harris, who said he believes there is 'merit' to get rid of 'uniformity' in rising all welfare payments — such as Jobseeker's and the pension — by the same weekly amount. 'Roughly speaking, the equivalent of €1.20/€1.25 on every social welfare payment is roughly the equivalent of reducing college fees by €1,000. So budgets are all about choices,' he said last week. 'I'm not convinced that you need to see as significant a rise in the dole as in the pension, at a time when our country is in full employment and when there's lots of supports out there for people getting into work. There's other supports out there for people who can't work for very many good reasons.' Chair of the Oireachtas Social Protection Committee, Fine Gael TD John Paul O'Shea, previously called for 'vulnerable groups' to be prioritised over the unemployed. Proposals to have smaller increases to Jobseeker's than to pensions were rejected by previous governments.
Dublin Live
6 hours ago
- Dublin Live
Lotto player guaranteed to become millionaire as main jackpot hits €10 million
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Lotto players have an extra chance to become a millionaire this weekend with a guaranteed €1 million to the Lotto Plus Raffle prize fund. The Lotto Plus Raffle typically sees between 60 and 120 winners of €500 per draw but tomorrow will see each of the tickets with the winning raffle number entered into a once-off draw, where one will be selected to win an additional prize of €1 million. Meanwhile the main Lotto jackpot is set to hit a staggering €10 million on Saturday night. Lotto players hoping to become the country's next millionaire are reminded that tickets can be purchased in-store, through the National Lottery app or at ahead of the 7.45pm cut-off time for sales on Saturday evening. There have been 13 Lotto players who have become millionaires this year, including a Dublin online player who scooped €1 million in the Lotto Plus draw and a winner who bought their €2.9 million ticket in Applegreen in Rathcoole. Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice . For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage .
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Irish Independent
‘Irish working mothers are at a significant financial disadvantage' – unions back calls for full year's maternity leave
It is now official Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) policy, after a motion calling for 52 weeks of maternity pay north and south of the border was adopted by delegates at its biennial conference this week. The motion said current maternity pay arrangements fall short of international best practice. Tabled by the British Fire Brigades Union, it claimed there is a 'postcode lottery' effect where workers in some regions and sectors get markedly inferior benefits. Workers and self-employed individuals in the Republic of Ireland are entitled to a social welfare maternity benefit payment of €289 per week for 26 weeks. Some employers top up the entitlement. Employer group Isme supported measures to provide women with paid maternity leave, but said it should be supported by the social fund. Bulgaria offers approximately 58.6 weeks (410 days) of paid maternity leave 'Obviously a year's salary for someone not attending work would not be sustainable for the vast majority of employers, therefore this type of measure must be underwritten by the social fund,' said chief executive Neil McDonnell. He said Bulgaria offers approximately 58.6 weeks (410 days) of paid maternity leave. Mr McDonnell said 90pc of the mother's full salary is paid from its National Health Insurance Fund. 'Employers would not welcome an increase in PRSI, obviously, but if asked to pay for long-term maternity leave, it would be the only way to do so,' he said. 'A creche with four childminders or a hairdresser with five stylists could not afford to pay someone for a year who was not working. This is very obvious, and everyone including Ictu knows this.' Ictu spokesperson Laura Bambrick said the move would entail a hike in PRSI for workers, the self-employed and employers. She said Ireland compares very favourably to EU countries in terms of the duration of paid maternity leave benefits, at 26 weeks. 'But when comparing the payment rates for maternity benefit, Irish working mothers are at a significant financial disadvantage,' she said. Ms Bambrick said maternity benefit at €289 a week for 26 weeks (€7,514) is equivalent to just over nine weeks' full pay for the average employee nationwide. It is worth just under eight weeks for an employee in Dublin, where average gross pay is higher (€49,500) than the national average (€42,100), according to Revenue data. "For a full-time worker on the minimum wage (€526), maternity benefit replaces little over half their weekly wage,' she said. Unions will be holding their feet to the fire to deliver on these important work-life balance measures Ms Bambrick welcomed Programme for Government commitments on pay-related family leave. 'Unions will be holding their feet to the fire to deliver on these important work-life balance measures for working families,' she said. A Department of Children, Disabliity and Equality spokesperson said family leave entitlements have increased significantly over the past years. She said a 'Whole-of-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families' commits that by 2028, parents in Ireland will be supported to look after their babies at home for the whole of their first year through a combination of paid family leave schemes. She said the combined durations of maternity, paternity and parent's leave and benefit now equate to 46 weeks' paid leave for a two-parent family.
