More funds needed for dole, say Greens

THE Government was warned yesterday that it will need to allocate more funding for dole payments this year due to the growing economic crisis.

Larger numbers of redundancies than expected have resulted in increased payments of unemployment benefit already this year.

Analysing the Social Welfare statistics released yesterday, the Green Party said the Government risks underestimating trends that will lead to higher social welfare expenditure this year.

The Statistical Information on Social Welfare Services showed the unemployment payments amounted to almost 10% of total social welfare expenditure of 9.5 billion last year.

Overall expenditure on unemployment payment increased by almost 30% from 2001 as a result of a live register rise of nine per cent.

According to Green Party finance spokesman Dan Boyle, Minister for Social Welfare Mary Coughlan will have to get a supplementary estimate before the end of the year.

The statistical report also showed the Celtic Tiger days of spending are gone in the department, he said.

“It indicates how in 2003 the Department is more likely to disappoint than substantially improve the lot of those who have less in our society.”

Minister Coughlan said up to 940,000 were in receipt of a weekly social welfare payment last year with nearly 1.5 million people directly benefiting. In the year of the general election, social welfare expenditure increased by more than a fifth, up from 7.8 million in 2001.

“The report will be of significant value in the development of policies responsive to the needs of people in a wide variety of circumstances,” the Minister said.

But Deputy Boyle said the broken promises for 2003 include a failure to introduce a third annual large increase in Child Benefit and direct cuts in Employment Supports.

“These changes are counterproductive and will only result in people being more dependent and for longer periods on the services of the departments.”