asked the Minister for Social Welfare why old age pensioners who receive British retirement pensions, who are living alone and who receive Irish social welfare amenities are ineligible for free telephone rental; and if he will extend the scheme to cover such categories.

: The free telephone rental allowance scheme is confined to recipients of the living alone allowance under the Social Welfare Acts. British retirement pensioners are not eligible for the living alone allowance unless they are also in receipt of an old age contributory or non-contributory pension from my Department. It is not proposed at present to extend the free telephone rental allowance scheme to other categories of pensioners.

: Does the Minister not consider that these people deserve free telephone rentals as they do live alone?

: I am not saying they do not deserve lots of things but at the moment I am not in a position to extend this facility to them.