Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 13 Jun 1995

Vol. 454 No. 3

Written Answers. - Home Helps.

Ivor Callely

Question:

157 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will improve social welfare benefits or relax conditions applying to home helps who are social welfare recipients; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10572/95]

Minister for Social Welfare (Proinsias De Rossa)

Any person employed as a home help by a health board is subject to the normal PRSI rules and are insured at the class A rate of contribution in respect of any week in which earnings exceed the £30 threshold. PRSI at the class A rate gives cover for the full range of contributory benefits and pensions available under the social welfare system, subject to the usual statutory conditions. Persons whose earnings fall below £30 per week are insured at a reduced rate which covers occupational injuries benefits only.

Home helps working part-time and earning below £60 per week are exempt from the employee's share of PRSI while those earning in excess of that amount benefit from the £50 PRSI allowance introduced by this Government in the last budget.

Home helps are eligible to apply for unemployment benefit or unemployment assistance, as appropriate, for any days or weeks during which they are not engaged in home help duties but are otherwise available for work. The social welfare legislation already provides that, in the case of unemployment assistance and other means-tested payments, earnings from home help duties will not be taken into account for means-test purposes.

The legislation also provides for circumstances where the adult dependant of a social welfare recipient is employed as a home help. In these cases, the dependent spouse is entitled to earn up to £60 per week without affecting entitlement to any adult dependant allowance or child dependant allowances in payment. Other measures taken to encourage and support the concept of home help work include an arrangement whereby entitlement to payments such as the family income supplement or lone parent's allowance is not adversely affected by earnings from home help duties.

There is, therefore, a considerable degree of flexibility within the social welfare system to enable recipients or their adult dependants to engage in home help duties while still retaining existing social welfare payments in most circumstances. Any further improvements in this regard would be a matter for consideration in the context of available resources and other priorities.