€2bn paid out to cover people too ill to work

TOTAL pay-outs for people claiming to be too ill to work exceeded €2 billion last year, more than three times higher than corresponding pay-outs at the height of the economic boom.

More than 10,000 people were in receipt of state supports due to depression, with a further 4,500 stating that stress was the major factor in why they were unfit for work.

New figures from the Department of Social Protection show that the number of people who are receiving illness benefits and disability allowances has increased drastically since the end of the Celtic Tiger era.