Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This comes back to the point I made earlier. If people were denied or were potentially ineligible to claim the widow's pension because of this rule, the likelihood is that if they are eligible for a non-contributory payment, they probably would have been eligible for, and receiving, some other payment, whether jobseeker's assistance or some other claim. We are only talking about those who would have been potentially entitled to a benefit claim based on their PRSI history and who are over the income thresholds for social welfare means-tested payments. Deputy Ó Cuív is saying the number in that cohort under the age of 66 who are likely to have children is quite small. The potential liability to the State is quite small and the issue should be resolved retrospectively by the Department. We are all in agreement on the approach that can and should be taken to this matter because of the hardship it has caused historically, as articulated by Senator Wall.