State's refusal of care allowance to father while child in hospital not discriminatory, court rules

Applicants took judicial review proceedings after the Department of Social Protection informed the father he did not qualify for the allowance while the boy was in an 'institution', where his care was paid for with public funds.

A father and son have lost their appeal over being refused a domiciliary care allowance over two and a half years while the boy, who has a serious medical condition, was in hospital. File picture: Laura Hutton/RollingNews.ie

A father and son have lost their appeal over being refused a domiciliary care allowance over two and a half years while the boy, who has a serious medical condition, was in hospital.

The three judge Court of Appeal rejected arguments the refusal amounted to discrimination, contrary to the Constitution and the European Court of Human Rights, between the father and a parent caring for a similarly positioned child at home.