Flood victims 'will be means-tested'
The Government is admitting that some people hit by flooding may be means tested to get humanitarian aid payments.
A hardship fund has been set up, with the Government saying it is to reach out to those without insurance for the essentials of getting their homes back in order.
Insurance companies have been warned the fund is not to let them off the hook in making payments to people.
Social and Family Affairs Minister Mary Hanafin says checks on payments will be made by Community Welfare Officers.
"The fund it is envisaged will obviously be a hardship fund, so there will have to be some element of means testing involved," she said.
"But I accept what people said, and what they said earlier in relation to having too much beauracracy, and we will try to avoid that.
"We believe that the CWOs are the right people to do it because they have the local knowledge, and good and all as the Red Cross are, they are not locally based."
