Kildare Senator: ‘Fuel Allowance changes are welcome, but others deserving are been left out’

A Senator based in County Kildare has said that while the recent Fuel Allowance changes are welcome, he maintained that others deserving of them 'are been left out.'

The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from late September to April, at an estimated cost of €366 million in 2022.  

The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs.

Labour Party Senator Mark Wall called on the Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, to review a number of cases where those that should be in receipt of the Fuel Allowance are not getting it.

Speaking on the Social Welfare Bill at 2nd stage in the Seanad, Senator Wall said that he had received 'some queries' about the fuel allowance: "The first was in relation to people who have moved from jobseeker's benefit to the community employment scheme, CE.

"I am dealing with a case, and I am aware of other cases, where a person on the CE service support stream still does not qualify for the fuel allowance. Perhaps the Minister could look at that case if I send the details on to the Department.

"It seems unfair that person has lost out over a number of years and they still do not qualify for the fuel allowance."

Senator Mark Wall, Labour Party. File Pic

The Athy politician also raised concerns about the situation where a person in a house has a child in receipt of social welfare who is still living with them: "They are also out of the loop when it comes to the fuel allowance. My colleagues raised this recently with the Minister but the response did not give much hope for those families.

"In many cases, the family member leaves the home, goes onto a housing list and even receives the housing assistance payment, HAP.

"Surely, in a housing crisis, we should allow the fuel allowance payment to be paid to families who continue to provide a roof over their children's heads?

"They are losing out on the warmer home scheme, as well as the fuel allowance. It is a growing worry for many. I ask the Minister to revisit that situation."

Following the debate , Senator Wall said: "This week alone I have dealt with multiple cases where families are loosening out on the fuel allowance because they have a person in receipt of a social welfare payment living with them, in a housing crisis this is wrong.

"The Minister (for Social Protection) recently told my colleague Deputy Duncan Smith in a reply to a parliamentary question that she had no plans to change the criteria for such a scenario.

"I find that to be very unfair and in the crisis we are in, needs to change," he said.

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RESPONSE

The response to Deputy Smith's query from Minister Humphreys can be read below:

"This payment is to assist these households with their energy costs.

"The criteria for Fuel Allowance are framed in order to direct the limited resources available to my Department in as targeted a manner as possible. 

"To qualify for the Fuel Allowance payment, a person must satisfy all the qualifying criteria including the household composition criteria. 

"This ensures that the Fuel Allowance payment goes to those who are more vulnerable to fuel poverty, including those reliant on social protection payments for longer periods and who are unlikely to have additional resources of their own.

"An adult child living with a householder may result in a reduction of additional allowances such as the Fuel Allowance payment to a householder. 

"However, the economies of scale from living together should mean that a contribution towards household costs by the person would compensate for any such reduction in payments from my Department. 

"A change in the qualifying criteria such as that proposed by the Deputy would change the targeted nature of the scheme and would likely result in payments being directed to households with significant income.  

"Therefore, there are no plans to amend the Fuel Allowance qualifying criteria to allow for the payment of Fuel Allowance in the circumstances outlined by the Deputy.

The Minister concluded: "There will always be exceptional cases and it is for this reason that the Department of Social Protection provides Additional 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."