Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe has confirmed the Christmas bonus will be paid at the end of the year.
Speaking before the Oireachtas Committee on Budgetary Oversight, Mr Donohoe denied the payment would be sacrificed to pay for water charge refunds.
Fianna Fáil TD Dara Calleary questioned the Minister on the provision of the payment. The welfare benefit was restored to 85 per cent last year, and benefitted 590,000 pensioners and 620,000 other welfare recipients.
The Minister also insisted the economy was not at risk of overheating despite warnings by a number of oversight bodies, including the European Commission.
Mr Donohoe siad: “ I do not believe there is a risk at the moment, nor do I see signs of overheating at the moment, but, as I said last Tuesday or Wednesday, risks could develop in the coming years, and I am aware that we were burned in the recent past.”
The Minister also used the Oireachtas committee to criticise comments made by a number of left TDs. Mr Donohoe alleged he had been called a dictator and compared to North Korea by People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett, a charge the TD denied.
