29672 (2023). Ricardo Menéndez March to the Minister for Social Development and Employment

29672 (2023). Ricardo Menéndez March to the Minister for Social Development and Employment: What is the number of, and amount spent, on hardship payments approved for food for each quarter since March 2017, broken down by ethnicity, age band, gender, payment purpose, and payment recoverability?

Hon Louise Upston: I refer the Member to the attached tables: • Table One: The number of grants and amount granted for food from 1 January 2017 to 30 September 2023, by quarter and recoverable type. • Table Two: The number of grants and amount granted for food from 1 January 2017 to 30 September 2023, by quarter and age group. • Table Three: The number of grants and amount granted for food from 1 January 2017 to 30 September 2023, by quarter and gender. • Table Four: The number of grants and amount granted for food from 1 January 2017 to 30 September 2023, by quarter and ethnicity. Please note, hardship payments for food are only non-recoverable payments.