As Chairperson of the Committee for Communities, I support the motions relating to the Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order (NI) 2024 and the Social Security Benefits Up-rating Regulations (NI) 2024. The Committee considered the order and the draft regulations at its meeting on 11 April 2024. The Committee regularly sees secondary legislation pertaining to social security benefits, and it is aware that the order is one of several statutory rules that relate to the annual uprating of certain benefits, pensions and allowances.

Whilst any increase during a cost-of-living crisis is to be welcomed, the Committee continues to hear regularly from witnesses about the ongoing hardship faced by many of the most vulnerable in our communities.

The Committee welcomed the uprating of premiums paid to disabled people in receipt of working-age benefits — universal credit, income support, housing benefit, jobseeker's allowance and employment and support allowance — by 6·7%, in line with CPI, as the Minister said. We also welcomed the fact that certain child and family elements will also be uprated in line with the increase in the relevant HMRC rates.

It is important to recognise specific adjustments such as the increase in widow's pension and the pension credit minimum guarantee. Those adjustments signify an important step in supporting our most vulnerable citizens, including widowers, pensioners and those who rely on pensions and allowances. Whilst we acknowledge those positive changes, it is crucial to recognise the ongoing challenges faced by many in our community, particularly in the cost-of-living crisis. Despite the uprating, there are pressing concerns that still need our urgent attention.

We must not overlook the fact that carers and individuals with disabilities continue to struggle to meet their daily needs. The increases in carer's allowance, disability living allowance and personal independence payments are welcome, yet they may fall short in providing the necessary support for those groups. Carers who dedicate their life to looking after a loved one and those who live with disabilities require more robust support to cope with rising costs and the financial pressures that they face daily.

Committee members have been interested in carer's allowance, having been briefed by Carers NI on how unfair that benefit is. Worth only £81·90 a week and available only to those who provide unpaid care for a minimum of 35 hours a week means that the payments are worth a maximum of £2·34 an hour, which is equivalent to nearly five times less than the national living wage. The associated uprating rule introduces a modest increase — from £139 to £151 — in the amount that a person eligible for payment of carer's allowance may earn in the preceding week without being deemed to be gainfully employed and losing their entitlement to that allowance.

Whilst the Committee commends the Department for bringing forward the adjustments, which the Committee supports, we must continue to advocate continued evaluation and enhancement of our social security system to ensure that all individuals, especially carers and those with disabilities, receive the comprehensive support that they deserve. I am content to recommend that the Assembly approve the order and the associated regulations.