2041. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated cost in 2027 if the telephone support allowance increased to €4.50 per week. [61386/26]

The Telephone Support Allowance is a weekly payment of €2.50 for people on certain social welfare payments who are also getting both the Living Alone Increase and the Fuel Allowance. The primary objective of the Telephone Support Allowance is to allow the most vulnerable people at risk of isolation, including the elderly and those with disabilities, access to personal alarms or phones for security.

It is estimated that the average number of Telephone Support Allowance recipients in 2027 will be approximately 169,500. If the increase proposed by the Deputy were implemented in 2027, the additional cost is estimated at €17.63 million for that year.

All proposals, including any proposals to increase the rate payable for the Telephone Support Allowance could only be considered while taking account of overall Government policy and in a budgetary context.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.