Coughlan defends ‘savage 16’ welfare cuts
Almost a week after the Estimates were unveiled, the opposition continued to exert pressure on Minister Mary Coughlan and the Government in the Dáil over the 58 million in cuts, with robust attacks on the changes by Fine Gael’s social affairs spokesman Michael Ring and by Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte. Mrs Coughlan defended the changes during a heated debate on the Estimates in the Dáil.
The Department would have a record 10.65 billion in 2004, which, she said, would double 1997 figures. She also insisted that the figures did not take into account the increases in social welfare payments to be included in the upcoming Budget.
However, she conceded that limits on public spending imposed by Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy had impacted on her department and that a number of spending pressures had arisen during the last year.
Specifically, there had been a substantial increase in the number of child-benefit claimants, increased utility prices (such as gas and electricity bills) for those benefiting from free schemes and a significant increase in the number of people claiming rent supplements. She said that the changes would not affect existing claimants, but rather those applying for the first time in 2004.
She revealed that 58,376 rent supplements were being paid at present, costing 330m, an increase of 76m
