asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he is aware that serious hardship is being suffered by persons claiming unemployment assistance and who are not yet in receipt of it; that owing to the fact that they have made application they now get no assistance whatever from many charitably-minded people who helped them in the past and to ask the Minister, if he can, to speed up the decisions in these cases.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Unemployment Assistance Claimants.
I am not aware that the facts are as suggested by the Deputy's question. I am satisfied that there is no avoidable delay in dealing with applications for unemployment assistance and in making any payments to which the applicants are entitled.
Yet the Minister admits that there are 20,000 appeals pending.
I would remind the Deputy that his question refers to persons claiming unemployment assistance. The 20,000 appeals are in respect of persons refused certificates. Any person entitled to unemployment assistance—that is, a person holding a certificate—can, I am satisfied, procure payment of whatever assistance he is entitled to without delay.
I can assure the Minister that they cannot. I can give him definite cases in which they cannot. The point is that in these particular cases they have made application. The people who used to assist them tell them: "You can get it; why not get it?" But they are not getting it.
There is no delay in dealing with the appeals against the refusal of unemployment assistance to qualified persons. These appeals are dealt with by the local court of referees and disposed of very expeditiously.