Government may boost Living Alone Allowance to ease energy costs

Ministers are considering boosting the Living Alone Allowance, given the increased cost of energy, junior minister Seán Canney confirmed.

The Government is considering improvements to social welfare supports in the budget for people living alone to help address escalating energy bills.

The coalition is also under pressure from its independent ministers to bring in measures to help the self-employed.

Ministers are considering boosting the Living Alone Allowance, given the increased cost of energy, junior minister Seán Canney confirmed.

“If you’re living alone in a house, it’s the same cost to heat it as if there are two people in the house,” Mr Canney told the Irish Examiner.

“We have to look at that scenario to see how best we can target (supports) for people.”

Mr Canney said the Government wants to introduce support in the “here and now”, but it is also looking at longer-term measures, such as a boiler scrappage scheme and home battery storage to assist with lowering costs.

He declined to specify how much would likely be added to boost the Living Alone and the Fuel Allowance, saying measures are being costed and discussed between departments.

It comes as Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the energy burden is “critical”, which is placing huge pressure on families.

“We're going to look at a range of measures to try and help people and alleviate the pressures they are under in respect of energy costs and energy pricing,” Mr Martin said, speaking in New York.

He said this would be done for home heating oil, but also for petrol and diesel.

“We will do what we can to ease it. Along with other budgetary measures embracing income tax reductions, childcare, disability, we would hope that we can target measures to particularly help those who will be most impacted,” the Taoiseach said.

Mr Canney also said the Government would consider measures to assist those who are self employed and operate small businesses.

He said this would be done by looking at measures such as research and development tax credits and supports to help self-employed people with their pensions.

He pointed out that some self-employed people have staff who receive pension coverage, but the individual themselves do not.

“It’s just to recognise the fact that they’re taking a risk as well, and they need to be looked after when they retire.”

On further expansion of the carers allowance, Mr Canney said the Government is currently reviewing the changes brought about in Budget 2026.

The weekly income disregard rose to €1,000 per month for a single person and €2,000 for a couple.

“We’re doing an evaluation of that to see what measures we need to add on because the programme for government commitment is that over the lifetime of the government it will be non-means tested."

Mr Canney said discussions on the means test are still ongoing.