Social welfare recipients should be given 27.5% of the average annual wage, Social Justice Ireland has argued. 

Ahead of the National Economic Dialogue to discuss pre-Budget submissions, the think tank has said the Government should benchmark social welfare payments as a percentage of wages and increase them accordingly. 

On Newstalk Breakfast, Social Justice Ireland spokesperson Susanne Rogers argued it would give both Ministers and social welfare recipients certainty each year. 

“It's just really important that, as inflation rises, wages will follow and that social welfare would keep in line with those increases,” she said. 

“It would also give certainty, I think, as well to Government that they would know what would be expected. 

“As well as anybody who's in receipt of a core social welfare rate, again, that they would have maybe some sort of an idea as to what they could expect in the coming budget.”

Ms Rogers argued that 27.5% of average weekly earnings would be an appropriate benchmark and would transform the lives of many living on social welfare. 

“That is actually the same benchmark that Government committed to in 2007,” she said. 

“At the moment, that would require an uplift of €25 a week to average social welfare. 

“It's not a huge amount and that would make such a massive difference.”

When questioned about whether the benchmark could be distorted by wage growth among the superrich, Ms Rogers said a formula could be devised to take this into account. 

“Ireland actually has a lot of people earning not very much,” she said. 

“High earners are high earners and they will skew the picture - but generally, no.

“Again, this would be over a long term as well. 

“So maybe if you did have either an influx or an outflow in any particular year, that might be an issue.”

If such a policy were adopted by the Government, Ms Rogers added that it is unlikely to encourage people to give up work. 

“A life on a social welfare rate of €250 a week for a single adult to pay your rent, your heat, your light, your food, your bins, your mobile phone, your haircuts, everything,” she said. 

“You have condemned yourself to a life of poverty. 

“If you are making a conscious decision to turn down paid work to remain on social welfare, it is about people who are finding it difficult to access employment.”

Main image: A wallet with euro coins in it. Picture by: Alamy.com.