asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will include night heating in the free electricity allowance scheme.

The free electricity allowance scheme administered by the Department is based on the ESB's two-part domestic tariff. It provides relief from the normal standing charge and from the cost of up to 200 and 300 units of electricity each two months in the summer and winter periods respectively. The scheme was not designed to cover electricity supplied at special reduced rates as in the case of night rate space heating and there are no plans to extend the scheme in the manner suggested.

Would the Minister agree that elderly people living in flats and apartments very much need heat at night? In view of the cold winters that we are now experiencing, would he reconsider his attitude and allow night heating to be included? That is not going to break the Department.

I would not be too sure about that.

I would certainly agree with the Deputy that every effort should be made to ensure that elderly people have proper heating. The present free electricity allowance comprises relief from the normal standing charge in respect of the ESB two-part domestic tariff together with the cost of up to 200 or 300 units of electricity which is currently 7.35 pence per unit per two monthly billing in the summer and winter periods respectively. Since the introduction of the scheme in 1967 it has been confined to electricity supplies on the two-part domestic tariff which covers most electricity supplies for domestic purposes. It has not included electricity supply at the special reduced rates, such as for storage heating which is covered by a separate tariff at approximately half the domestic rate. I gather that the Deputy wants this provision extended to storage heating, but there are many difficulties in that area. The ESB estimate that approximately 4,000 to 5,000 of the 164,000 pensioners entitled to free electricity have storage heating, which is a very small number of people.

As the Minister has stated that there are not many involved and that it would not cost the Department that much, would he agree to include these people living in flats and apartments, where there are no fireplaces and no heating systems? Furthermore, they can only use a certain number of units. It would be no extra burden on the Department.

The cost of granting a special allowance of, say, 1,000 units — which would cover the use of one storage heater — to 5,000 pensioners with storage heating over the free winter billing period would be approximately £544,000 per annum. The potential cost of all free electricity recipients seeking a special allowance for night heating would be £17,860,000 for the six winter months. The estimate for the free electricity allowance scheme for 1984 is £20,665,000.

Would the Minister——

I would like to discuss a dozen questions at Question Time. That would be five minutes a question.

11.