asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will state what is the cause of the delay in paying unemployment benefit to a person in Athy, County Kildare.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Unemployment Benefit Claim.
Payment of all outstanding unemployment benefit was made in this case on the 27th ultimo.
Special transitional regulations made by the Minister enabled female contributors to qualify for unemployment benefit on the basis of their national health contribution record if they exchanged an unemployment book and national health insurance card for a new insurance card current from October last. When this contributor made her claim, records showed that she had not surrendered an unemployment book for the insurance year which ended in October last. It transpired, however, that she had surrendered the previous year's unemployment bookwhen she was obtaining her new insurance card and she was regarded as coming within the scope of the special transitional regulations.
I might add that but for the changes in legislation this claimant would not have been entitled to benefit on her claim.