466. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Social Protection the key measures taken to support carers since January 2025; his priorities for the rest of 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53511/26]

The Government recognises and values the important role of family carers, and is committed to continuing to improve the supports available to them.

The main income supports to carers provided by the Department are Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant.  Expenditure on these payments this year is expected to exceed €2.2 billion.

The Programme for Government commits to strengthening supports for family carers with a particular focus on the concerns raised by carers and their representative groups.  The main priority has been the progressive removal of the Carer’s Allowance means test and substantial progress has been achieved.

In July 2025 when the income disregards increased from €450 to €625 for a single person and from €900 to €1,250 for a couple.  As part of Budget 2026, and with effect from this month, the Government has further increased the weekly income disregard by 60%, from €625 to €1,000 for a single person, and from €1,250 to €2,000 for carers who are part of a couple.

These changes are the largest ever increases in the history of the scheme with virtually all those in receipt of Carer's Allowance now in receipt of the maximum rate of payment.

A carer in a two-adult household with an income of approximately €110,000 can retain their full Carer’s Allowance payment and with an income of €138,000 will retain a partial payment.  This covers up to 90% of couple households.

A single carer working part-time can now earn up to €50,000 and retain their full Carer’s Allowance Payment.  The disregard is over double the average earnings for part-time workers.

Progress has also been made on weekly carer rates of payments.  In January 2026 there was a €10 increase in the maximum personal rate of Carer's Allowance and Carer's Benefit to €270 and €271, respectively, for carers aged under 66.  For those aged 66 and over, the weekly rate for Carer’s Allowance is now €308.  There are proportionate increases for people getting a reduced rate.  This is the fifth successive rise in weekly welfare rates which have increased by €51 over the last five years.

As part of Budget 2026, the monthly rate of Domiciliary Care Allowance was increased by €20, bringing it to €380 in January.  This payment has increased by €70.50 per month since January 2023.

The Child Support Payment also increased to €78 for children aged 12 and over and €58 for those under 12.

The Carer’s Support Grant was increased by €150 to €2,000 in June 2025, its highest ever level.  The grant is paid in respect of each person being cared for.  This year’s grant was paid to over 147,000 carers on 4 June.

The Department continues to actively engage with carer stakeholders, most recently at the Pre-Budget Forum on 1 July.  This will help inform the development of proposals for the forthcoming Budget having regard to overall costs and improvement in social welfare.