asked the Minister for Social Welfare what improvements he intends introducing to the home assistance service particularly relating to financing, staffing and administration; and what steps will be taken to ascertain the views of the health boards and county councils which at present administer the service.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Home Assistance Service.
10.
Mr. Dunne
As I informed the House when introducing my Department's Estimate in November last, our assistance services, including home assistance are being subjected to a wide-ranging review with the object of framing a new comprehensive code of social assistance. I also informed the House on that occasion that this would probably involve a radical restructuring of the various assistance schemes, entailing a redesigning of the present scales of payment so as to reflect more accurately the different requirements of various categories of recipients. With a view to achieving a proper overall development of the state income maintenance services I am envisaging substantial reform and integration of the existing home assistance scheme with these services.
I believe that administration of this important residual service by a multiplicity of local authorities cannot be justified in the context of a properly-oriented social welfare code, and I contemplate that improved but flexible national standards will be laid down instead of the arbitrary payments now allowed which, being met from local rates, must depend on the availability of local resources and therefore vary considerably from one area to another. The scheme I have in mind should, I believe, operate as a local service and may, perhaps, be integrated with a reorganised unemployment assistance scheme into one locally administered social assistance service. I should mention that I outlined my intentions regarding the home assistance service in lengthy discussion on two occasions last year with representatives of the superintendent assistance officers and assistance officers, and the results of a detailed survey of the working of the present service which my Department carried out in collaboration with the public assistance authorities as part of the reform programme were examined in joint meetings arranged during those discussions between representatives of these officers and officers of my Department.
As I stated in reply to a question on 8th March, I hope to be in a position to submit my firm proposals for restructuring of the assistance services, including home assistance, to the Government at an early date. The Deputy will appreciate that until the Government have approved the general lines of my reform programme, it is not possible to formulate detailed proposals regarding the staffing and administration of the new local social assistance service which I have in mind. In this connection, I might mention, however, that it would be my intention, as I have already indicated, inter alia, to the officers' representatives in the discussions referred to, that where any additional staff is required for that service, they will be obtained as far as possible from the officers at present administering home assistance.
In addition to the views which have been already conveyed by the representatives of the superintendent assistance officers and the assistance officers during their meetings with me I will, of course, at the appropriate time, take into account the views of all other interested parties which may relate to my proposals.
Is the Minister aware of the hardship caused to home assistance recipients who have to travel long distances to the meeting place or the depot where the home assistance officer hands out the money? Could he not arrange for those who are receiving money over long periods to have the money posted to them or left at the local post office where they could collect it when shopping? Great hardship is caused at present when they have to attend at a particular hour on a particular day. Many of them have to travel long journeys and have to walk.
Perhaps all local authorities do not make the same arrangements but most of them, as far as I know, have these stations in convenient areas in which the radius is not too wide for anybody. I shall look into any particular case that the Deputy may give me.