Fianna Fáil to demand increase in social welfare payments in budget

Fianna Fáil will demand another increase in the state pension and other social welfare payments in the budget later this year.

Willie O’Dea, the party’s social protection spokesman, said pensioners, carers and people with disabilities would be prioritised in the same way they were last year when a €5 increase was secured.

“They were put to the back of the queue for many, many years. We began the process last year and we ...