403 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if a full rent allowance will be granted to a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; the reason this person was offered only £15.00 per week; and the changes which were introduced in Budget 2001 which restrict his Department from assisting single men with an employment profile such as this person's profile. [23777/01]

The supplementary welfare allowance, SWA, scheme is administered on behalf of my Department by the health boards and neither I nor my Department has any function in deciding entitlement in individual cases. Under the terms of the SWA scheme payment of a weekly or monthly supplement may be made in respect of rent or mortgage interest to any person in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs.

Supplementary welfare allowance is subject to a means test. Rent supplements are normally calculated to ensure that a person, after the payment of rent, has an income equal to the rate of supplementary welfare allowance appropriate to his or her family circumstances, less £6, 7.62. This £6, 7.62, represents the minimum contribution which recipients are required to pay from their own resources. Most recipients pay more than £6, 7.62, towards their rent because applicants are required to contribute any additional assessable means that they have over and above the appropriate basic supplementary welfare allowance rate towards their rent.

404 Mr. Boylan asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the reason widows and widowers under 66 years of age living alone and totally dependant on social welfare payments are not considered for payment of the free schemes; if he will favourably consider their inclusion; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23783/01]

409 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will make arrangements whereby a person who is in receipt of deserted wife's benefit can qualify for free travel on the grounds of disability without giving up an insurance-based payment and switching to disability allowance. [24015/01]

410 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the concern among some older persons that they may lose out under his proposal to amalgamate the free schemes into one house hold benefit if the price per unit of electricity or gas is raised; the steps he is taking to prevent this happening; if he will link the new payment to fuel price inflation rather than the overall consumer price index; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24021/01]

411 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will consider including widowed persons for free schemes; and the amount this would cost. [24044/01]

It is proposed to take Questions Nos. 404, 409, 410 and 411 together.

The free schemes, including the free electricity-gas allowance, free telephone rental allowance and free television licence schemes, are generally available to people living in the State, aged 66 years or over, who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who fulfil a means test. They are also available to carers and people with disabilities under the age of 66 who are in receipt of certain welfare type payments.

Widows and widowers aged from 60 to 65 whose late spouses had been in receipt of the free schemes retain that entitlement to ensure that households do not suffer a loss of entitlements following the death of a spouse.

The free schemes share a common set of objectives in the area of social inclusion. These are defined as: to provide assistance to those living alone by targeting them with specific benefits providing both income and social inclusion gains; to support older people and people with disabilities in their wish to remain in the community as opposed to institutional care; and to support Government policy which seeks to acknowledge the value of older people in society.

The many demands to extend the free schemes to other groups, including widows and widowers have been examined using social inclusion objectives as the criteria for decision. The schemes as currently constituted provide a basic package that ensures a limited standard of comfort or well-being to a particular targeted group, that is based on age or receipt of a disability related payment. Persons who are under the qualifying age or who are not in receipt of a disability related payment may not qualify for the free schemes. However, depending on the person's particular circumstances, it might be more advantageous for that person to transfer to disability allowance. If the Deputy has a particular person in mind, I would be glad to examine the entitlement to one of my Department's disability related payments.

Widows-widowers who are living alone may experience social exclusion, but they are not necessarily groups in need of community care support nor do they experience the same physical risks of isolation as older people and people with disabilities.