FLAC calls for amendments to Bereaved Partner’s Pension Bill which will give effect to O’Meara judgment

25 March 2025

FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centres) has published its preliminary analysis and recommendations concerning the the Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner's Pension) Bill 2025.
The 2025 Bill would give effect to the Supreme Court decision in O’Meara by expanding entitlement to social welfare schemes aimed at bereaved partners and families to qualified cohabitants and their children. FLAC welcomes the 2025 Bill but is concerned about the levelling down of the entitlements of certain other categories of bereaved families.
FLAC’s concerns centre around the provisions in the 2025 Bill which would prevent families who have experienced a divorce or separation from accessing relevant social welfare payments after a bereavement.
The 2025 Bill is scheduled for debate in the Dáil tomorrow (Wednesday, 26 March 2025) at 5:00pm.

FLAC Chief Executive Eilis Barry commented on the publication of FLAC’s analysis and recommendations:

“At present, people who are separated or divorced from a spouse or civil partner may access a survivor’s pension if that spouse or civil partner dies, provided that they (the surviving partner) have not remarried and are not cohabiting with someone else. The 2025 would remove this entitlement. Those provisions run contrary to the recommendations of the Oireachtas Social Protection Committee last year. They may also run contrary to the principles underpinning the O’Meara judgment.

The O’Meara decision was based on the principle that a family which suffers a financial loss as the result of the death of a parent should not be arbitrarily excluded from access to a survivor’s pension. The legislation giving effect to that decision should not create a new category of children who cannot benefit from such payments on the basis of the marital status of their parents. The death of an ex-partner can still bring about a financial loss for families as a result of the loss of maintenance payments on death (as separated or divorced spouses have an obligation to maintain their children and may also have an obligation to maintain each other).

FLAC has provided our analysis to the Minister for Social Protection and members of the Oireachtas and we have proposed amendments to the 2025 Bill which would address our concerns. We look forward to working constructively to ensure that the strongest and most inclusive version of this legislation is enacted.”

END.

FLAC’s full statement regarding the 2025 Bill may be accessed here.

Notes to Editors:

FLAC (Free Legal Advice Centres) is an independent human rights and equality organisation, which exists to promote access to justice. FLAC represented John O’Meara and his children in their successful legal challenge against their exclusion from the Widower’s Pension scheme. The family applied for the payment after the death of Mr O’Meara’s partner of almost 20 years and mother of their three children, Ms Michelle Batey.

As an Independent Law Centre, FLAC takes on a number of cases in the public interest each year and operates a Traveller Legal Service, Roma Legal Clinic and LGBTQI Legal Service. FLAC also operates a legal information and referral telephone line and a nationwide network of legal advice clinics where volunteer lawyers provide basic free legal advice.