asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will review the case of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 12 who had 219 contributions paid; who claimed for disability benefit in April 1987 whose payment was stopped in April 1988; if she should have continued to receive benefit as the guide to social welfare entitlements states that all new claims from April 1988 need 260 contributions but the requirement came to only 208 prior to that date.
Written Answers. - Social Welfare Payments.
75.
One of the conditions for the continuous payment of disability benefit is that a person must have 260 contributions paid since entry into insurable employment unless 52 weeks benefit had been paid immediately prior to January 1988. According to the records of the Department the person concerned has a total of 219 contributions paid since entering insurable employment.
Disability benefit has already been paid for the periods 22 April 1987 to 21 July 1987 and from 18 October 1987 to 22 April 1988. She had made a late claim for maternity benefit for the period from 22 July 1987 to 17 October 1987. This claim has been admitted. She also claimed and was paid maternity benefit for the period 13 June 1988 to 3 September 1988. Accordingly disability benefit is due to her for the periods from 23 April 1988 to 12 June 1988 and 4 September 1988 to 11 October 1988 when the combined total of weeks of disability benefit entitlement reached 52. In order to qualify for the further payment of disability benefit the person concerned requires a further 13 weeks of insurable employment.
76.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will review the case of persons (details supplied) in Dublin 8 who have been refused a free fuel allowance and EC meat, despite the fact that one of them is in receipt of unemployment assistance of £28.80 and the other is in receipt of disability benefit of £59.20.
Persons in receipt of the long-term rate of unemployment assistance are entitled to a weekly fuel allowance under the national fuel scheme provided that they (a) live alone or (b) reside only with a qualified adult dependant and/or child dependants. A qualified dependant for this purpose is a person in respect of whom an adult or child dependant allowance is payable. No fuel allowance is payable where any person other than the qualified dependants are residing with the claimant.
The person concerned is in receipt of unemployment assistance at the long-term rate of £38.80 per week. His wife is in receipt of disability benefit of £54.20 plus £5.00 pay related benefit per week. As he is residing with somebody who is not a qualified dependant he is not entitled to receive a fuel allowance under the 1988/1989 national fuel scheme.
Eligibility for free food under the European Community Free Food Scheme, which is administered by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul under the aegis of the Department of Agriculture, is confined to persons in receipt of the long-term rate of unemployment assistance who qualify for a fuel allowance under the national fuel scheme. As the person concerned is not in receipt of a fuel allowance he is not eligible for receipt of free food.