2075. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will review the eligibility criteria for the Living Alone Increase with a view to including individuals under the age of 66 who receive the Bereaved Partner's (Contributory) Pension and who independently satisfy the existing living-alone conditions; number of people who would benefit from this extension and the projected annual cost to the Exchequer; if this targeted measure will be evaluated in the context of the upcoming Budget 2027 and the next Social Welfare Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63131/26]

The Living Alone Increase (LAI) is a supplementary payment to those who are aged over 66, living alone and in receipt of a State Pension (Contributory), State Pension (Non-Contributory), Bereaved Partner’s (Contributory) Pension, Bereaved Partner's Pension under the Occupational Injuries Benefit Scheme, an Incapacity Supplement under the Occupational Injuries Benefit Scheme or a Deserted Wife's Benefit. It is also paid to people aged under 66 who live alone and are in receipt of a Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension, Incapacity Supplement or Blind Pension.

It is not a stand-alone payment and for this reason it is only available to those in receipt of one of those specified payments. In total about 260,000 people receive the payment on a weekly basis.

The Bereaved Partner’s (Contributory) Pension and the Bereaved Partner’s (Non-contributory) Pension, which are available to those under the age of 66 do not, specifically, require the recipient to be living alone. One of the conditions of receipt is that the claimant is not cohabiting as a couple with another person. The claimant may however live with other family members, or have dependent children in the case of the Bereaved Partner’s (Contributory) Pension. The conditions for receipt of the living alone increase would preclude such situations. The Bereaved Partner's (Contributory) Pension is not means tested and does not preclude the recipient from receiving other income whether through employment, self-employment or otherwise (although the payment may be subject to tax).

My Department does not hold data on the number of recipients of the Bereaved Partners Pensions aged under 66 who live alone, and who may satisfy the living alone condition of the LAI. Therefore, no costing of this proposal has been made.

Any further widening of the qualifying criteria for accessing the LAI can only be considered while taking account of the overall policy and budgetary situation.

I trust that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.