S.I. No. 302/1995:

SOCIAL WELFARE (TEMPORARY PROVISIONS) REGULATIONS, 1995.

SOCIAL WELFARE (TEMPORARY PROVISIONS) REGULATIONS, 1995.

The Minister for Social Welfare in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 4 and 241 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1993 (No. 27 of 1993), hereby makes the following Regulations:--

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Temporary Provisions) Regulations, 1995.

2. In these Regulations "the Principal Act" means the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1993 .

3. (1) Subject to this article, where a person is or becomes entitled to any benefit, pension, assistance or allowance mentioned in this article, any amount payable to that person by way of that benefit, pension, assistance or allowance (including any increase thereof) shall be increased by a sum equal to 70 per cent. of the appropriate weekly amount due to the said person in respect of the week commencing on--

(a) the 29th day of November, 1995 in the case of unemployment assistance payable in accordance with section 121 (1) (a) of the Principal Act, or

(b) the 7th day of December, 1995 in the case of retirement pension, invalidity pension, deserted wife's benefit, pre-retirement allowance, deserted wife's allowance, prisoner's wife's allowance, lone parent's allowance (other than lone parent's allowance payable in respect of a widow or a widower) or carer's allowance, or

(c) the 8th day of December, 1995 in the case of disablement pension, death benefit under sections 60, 61 or 62 of the Principal Act, old age (contributory) pension, survivor's pension, orphan's (contributory) allowance, old age (non-contributory) pension, blind pension, widow's (non-contributory) pension, orphan's (non-contributory) pension or lone parent's allowance payable in respect of a widow or widower:

Provided that a person (other than a person who by virtue of Regulations made under section 209 of the Principal Act is in receipt of more than one benefit, pension, assistance or allowance) shall not be entitled to more than one such increase.

(2) Where on the 7th or the 8th day of December, 1995, as the case may be, a pension is payable to a person by direct credit transfer in accordance with article 108 (2) (c) of the Social Welfare (Consolidated Payments Provisions) Regulations, 1994 and 1995, the pension shall be deemed to include, for the purposes of sub-article (1) of this article, the appropriate weekly amount due to that person in respect of the week commencing on the 7th day of December, 1995 in the case of retirement pension and invalidity pension and on the 8th day of December, 1995 in the case of old age (contributory) pension, survivor's pension and orphan's (contributory) allowance.

(3) Where the amount of the increase calculated pursuant to sub-article (1) of this article is less than £20, the said increase shall be payable at an amount of £20.

4. Where, by virtue of the provisions of these Regulations, the amount of benefit, pension, assistance or allowance (including any increase thereof) is increased, the amount so payable shall be rounded up to the nearest 10p where it is a multiple of 5p but not also a multiple of 10p and shall be rounded to the nearest 10p where it is not a multiple of 5p or 10p.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Social Welfare, this 13th

day of November, 1995.

PROINSIAS DE ROSSA,

Minister for Social Welfare.

The Minister for Finance hereby consents to the making of the foregoing Regulations.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Finance, this 17th

day of November, 1995.

RUAIRÍ QUINN,

Minister for Finance.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These Regulations provide for the payment of a Christmas Bonus to long-term social welfare recipients, equivalent to 70 per cent of their normal weekly payment, subject to a minimum payment of £20.

The Bonus payment applies to recipients of--

--disablement pension,

--death benefit by way of pension,

--old age (contributory and non-contributory) pensions,

--retirement pension,

--invalidity pension,

--survivor's pension,

--widow's (non-contributory) pension,

--orphan's (contributory and non-contributory) pensions,

--deserted wife's payments,

--pre-retirement allowance,

--blind pension,

--carer's allowance,

--lone parent's allowance,

--prisoner's wife's allowance, and

--unemployment assistance at the long-term rate.