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TAOISEACH ENDA KENNY would not confirm today if those in receipt of social welfare payments will receive their Christmas bonus this year.
Labour’s Brendan Howlin raised the issue during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil this afternoon.
“Will the government pay the Christmas bonus this year, and if so, will it be a full weekly payment?” asked Howlin.
The previous government abolished the payment in 2009.
In 2013, Kenny was dubbed as “Scrooge” in the Dáil when he said the money was not there to restore the payment.
However, in 2014 the payment was partially restored by the previous Tánaiste Joan Burton.
Since then, it has gradually increased. Last year, it received a 75% boost.
‘A long time ago’
Addressing the Dáil, the Labour leader harked back to days gone by when Fine Gael and Labour were in partnership government together.
“A long time ago,” the Taoiseach told the Dáil today.
Howlin pointed out that together, both parties worked to restore the Christmas bonus to families in receipt of social welfare payments.
As he knows, these payments are incredibly important, particularly at Christmas time, to some of the lowest-income households in the country, for example, a pensioner on €230 per week.It meant having an extra €173 last year to look after Christmas. For a job seeker on a very modest €188, it made the difference for a Christmas of having an additional €141 in his or her pocket.
“I recall one of the first or second budgets we discussed in rooms not too far from here a number of years ago… the question was whether to cut the different rates of social welfare because there was not any money for anything,” said Kenny.
“We resisted that,” Howlin interrupted.
Challenge
Having held the portfolio of Minister for Expenditure and Reform in the past, Kenny said Howlin should know “better than most in this House” the challenge facing Paschal Donohoe in two weeks time.
Kenny said no decision has been made as of yet – but added that the issue is being discussed.
This is an issue that is one of the things that must be considered, and we will try to be as fair as possible with the resources that are available to the two ministers [Finance Minister Michael Noonan and Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Paschal Donohoe].
The Wexford TD told the Taoiseach that the Minister for Social Protection Leo Varadkar said publicly this year that he intended to seek government support for a full payment this year.
‘The decent thing to do’
Howlin said it would be the “decent thing to do” to tell families now if they will be getting the payment this Christmas.
We are now approaching the end of September. It would be helpful for those families and those people planning their future and their Christmas and what they might be able to afford…
The Taoiseach would not be pushed on the issue and would not confirm one way or the other if the payment was to go ahead this year.
I cannot confirm what the final decision of Cabinet will be. That will not be evident until the discussions are finished with the different ministers and their counterparts.
Fianna Fáil’s Micheál Martin took today’s Leaders’ Questions as an opportunity to raise recent reports that the government is planning to entice emigrants home with tax cuts.
A report in yesterday’s Irish Independent said the government will attempt to lure highly-skilled workers from the UK back to Ireland with a special 30% tax rate. This rate would be for those earning €75,000 or more.
‘Bananas idea’
TheJournal.ie understands the initiative was not presented to Cabinet for approval and was not discussed at yesterday’s Cabinet meeting.
“Who came up with this bananas idea?” asked Martin.
Martin called the initiative “discriminatory” and “out of touch” – something Enda Kenny agreed with, to a degree.
“Somebody away in London or New York or America, wherever, and they come back, and they’re working in the same facility as somebody else and they’re paying a different rate of tax simply because they’ve come back?
“I would regard that as being unfair and discriminatory, of course.”
Dinosaurs voting for extinction.
@theseadoc thinking they are going back to the glory days of the empire.
@Brian Madden: jesus, grown adults calling themselves the star chamber, the UK is electing some beauties these days.
@Rayzor: This is not a lie, 100% true. They call themselves individually amongst themselves the ‘Star Wizards’, I wish I was joking but I am not.
@Gary Garden: Sure it’s hard to believe that Mark Francois is actually a real person and not a Harry Enfield character.
@Rayzor: Very true haha
On a general note the Conservative party particularly their cabinet and the right wing are really pitiful, a combination of air heads masquerading as ministers and then the old empire enthusiasts. Go Global Britain lol it’s such a comedy show.
@Gary Garden: can’t be doing to bad if they’re the 5th richest country in the whole entire world
@Michael Patrick: Hello Westy, they wont be in top 10 soon.
@Gary Garden: They have the 5th biggest economy but on a per capita basis they are miles down the table, 26th on GDP(PPP) and 20th GDP(nominal). Ireland is within the top 4 of both. They also have the wealthiest part of Northern europe in London but also 9 of the 10 most impoverished parts.
@Rayzor: Hi Rayzor, I lived and worked in the UK for over 6 years. I know where the wealth and poverty is quite well. This is Brexit and the only outcome is the rich will get richer and I dont need to say the rest. The average Brit is über gullible and just need to hear a posh and plump voice to believe they are as a country going in the right direction. They are in for a rude awakening now. No voice on the big table, US under Biden isnt going to prioritise the ‘special relationship’ BS which is just Anglo Saxon nostalgia by the way. They are now a minnow, they wonr even draw in FDI as they dont have EU labour market access. Its beyond mindblowingly stupid what they’ve dont.
@Gary Garden: hello spa who you calling westy
I think the differences between Theresa’s proposals and what has now been agreed are very small. The old Tory empire worshippers have now seen a little of what they could have expected if they had achieved the hard Brexit they so craved. The motorways to the ports blocked and no one in the EU too worried about their great friends in UK and best of all Donald dumped from power and replaced by a politician who knows that world prosperity is built on cooperation and not isolation. Good man Joe B.
@JG: where can I find an honest comparison between the Teresa deal and the current deal?
So let me get this straight – the ERG (who wanted Brexit so the UK could “reclaim its sovereignty from the EU”), are now saying that the Brexit deal is good because it “preserves the UK’s sovereignty”.
Last time I checked, “preserves” means to maintain something in its current or original state – in other words, preserving UK sovereignty is keeping what’s already in place….
@Brian: Preserve can refer to the future too
@Thomas O’ Donnell: preserve can be jam
I don’t know which is worse. Being a Brexiteer or a member of the Republican Party in the USA.
@Tim Quigley: you don’t know much.
It’s their decision and they have followed through. We’ll only know if it’s a good or Abad thing in years to come. But good luck to them.
@Sean Oige: Yes, they might need a bit of luck.
Dup party unmangling itself from the front wheel of the bus after it getting chucked under it.a party that wanted brexit now votes against brexit,haha
@reginald: mistake they made was not backing May’s deal. If they had they be no border north/south or east/west. Current deal has certainly weakened the Union.
The concept of sovereignty and the reality of the Fishing aspect of the Brexit deal are mutually exclusive and it would be disingenuous to claim otherwise. Scottish fishermen are rightly concerned at the very suggestion of having taken back “sovereignty “ given that the status quo ante shall pertain for 5.5 long years and even then the EU has an option to resile from the whole Agreement should a negotiated access to UK waters not be agreed. Even if a further Agreement can be negotiated it’s terms will be slanted in favour of the French fleet under pain of the sort of disruption witnessed at Dover in the past few days. Better to have forced Macron’s hand but when the Brits witnessed the chais at Dover the writing was on the wall. Fishing was a zero sum game in terms of hard economics
Those knobs would vote for anything
That black microphone really looks like a horn
oh course they are happy – the right of the UK to control it’s financial services and retain their tax havens was a priority to the offshore wealthy I understand. That it seems was worth it over an EU – UK financial services agreement.
Actually, not the worst outcome for Ireland by any means.. sorry about the fish – but this makes interesting reading https://ec.europa.eu/ireland/news/key-eu-policy-areas/fisheries_en
Them knobs would vote for anything.
Its pretty ironic that one of the stated reasons for the ERG supporting this deal is, that they don’t see it as binding, to the extent that they can choose to renege on it as soon as it pleases a “robust government” to do so and then trade under WTO rules and tariffs.
have your say