David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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406. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to introduce a support allowance payment for those who are already in receipt of a payment from her Department and who may be experiencing increased costs due to broadband connection issues arising as a result of living in an area which is deemed to be less commercially serviceable under the terms of the National Broadband Plan; if not, if an increase in the telephone support allowance payment will be considered for those in such a position; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5135/21]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The telephone support allowance (TSA) is an allowance of €2.50 which is paid to over 135,000 customers weekly.  The estimated full year cost of the scheme in 2021 is over €18 million.  To receive the allowance a customer of my Department must be in receipt of a qualifying payment and also in receipt of the living alone allowance and the fuel allowance.  The scheme supports recipients by assisting with the cost of communications and/or home security solutions. 

In Budget 2021, the Government decided to allocate one third of additional carbon tax revenues to boosting the incomes of the poorest in our society. The Government commissioned ESRI research which identified three key payments by the Department of Social Protection to channel carbon tax revenues towards this cohort. These were the Qualified Child Allowance, the Living Alone Allowance and the Fuel Allowance. 

Therefore, effective from January 2021, the weekly Fuel Allowance payment has been increased by €3.50 per week to €28 for a period of 28 weeks.  Also from January 2021, Qualified Child payments have been increased by €2 per week, from €36 to €38 per week, for children under 12 years of age and by €5 per week, from €40 to €45 per week, for children aged 12 and over.  It is estimated that this will benefit 419,000 children who are most in need.  The Living Alone Allowance was also increased in Budget 2021 by €5 from €14 to €19 at an overall cost in 2021 of €57.5m.

Therefore, all TSA recipients have benefitted from an increase in payments totalling €8.50 weekly during Fuel Season and €5 outside Fuel Season as a result of Budget 2021 changes.  

Furthermore, my Department operates both Exceptional and Urgent Needs Payments as part of the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme for people who have an urgent need, which they cannot meet from their own resources.  These payments are available through our Community Welfare Officers.

All proposals, including any proposals to introduce a new support allowance for people to help offset the cost of broadband or to increase the weekly rate of TSA could only be considered while taking account of overall Government policy and in a budgetary context.  

I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.