The Department of Social Protection has issued payments valued at €61.9 million today which will be paid to 217,142 recipients tomorrow – up 10,801 on the number paid last week.
Over 19,000 people have applied for the payment in the past seven days, which the department said partly reflects “the effect of some areas having to be moved to Level Three of restrictions” under the Government’s Living with Covid-19 plan.
With greater restrictions being introduced in Dublin, it is not surprising to see the overall number of PUP recipients increase.
“With greater restrictions being introduced in Dublin, it is not surprising to see the overall number of PUP recipients increase,” Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys said.
“The Government wanted to ensure that this safety net remained in place in the event that counties would face further restrictions. That’s why a decision was taken to extend PUP into next year and, more importantly, keep it open to new entrants.”
Work returns
The department said that the increase in this week’s figures “does not reflect the impact of Donegal moving to Level Three last Friday. It is expected that any such impact will be reflected in next week’s PUP figures.”
In the past seven days, 8,690 people have closed their claim for the payment, with 6,309 of this number reporting that they were returning to work.
The largest number of people returning to work is in the 35 to 44 group, followed by those aged 45 to 54.
The accommodation and food services sector has the highest number of people receiving a PUP payment this week, while education along with public administration and defence are the only sectors with a “slight fall” in payments this week.
