Advocates seek increase of almost €30 a week to deal with cost-of-living crisis

Social welfare recipients and pensioners need a minimum increase of €27 per week in the next Budget to keep pace with the rapidly rising level of inflation.

That’s according to Social Justice Ireland’s Dr Sean Healy, as he launched ‘Social Justice Matters: 2022 Guide to a Fairer Ireland’ this week.

“€27 per week is the increase required to core social welfare rates and pensions in the next Budget if current trends are maintained,” said the head of the country’s social justice think-tank.

“This is simply to bring these payments back to where they were 15 years ago, before the bank crash – and this is what is required to protect the most vulnerable as the cost-of-living rises,” he added.

Dr Healy said that this rising cost of living was felt most by those in the bottom twenty per cent of the income distribution.

“These households spend a larger proportion of their income on food and energy.  They are low-income individuals and families who have no additional disposable income, people who are already struggling to make ends meet,” he said.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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