Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 30 Mar 2000

Vol. 517 No. 2

Adjournment Debate. - Social Welfare Office Closure.

Mr. Wall

I thank the Ceann Comhairle and the Minister for taking this important matter. I appreciate the Minister's phone call today explaining the Department's position. In the Kildare offices of the Department there are approximately 500 to 560 people on the live register. This comprises a number of catchment areas such as Monasterevin, Rathangan, Suncroft and Kildare town. The biggest reason for the objection to the closure is the central position of the office in relation to the catchment areas. The loss of the office will be a major financial loss to the town of Kildare in that those in receipt of social welfare payments will, upon receipt of these payments, spend the money immediately on household goods such as food and so on in the area where the money is received. The closure of the Kildare office will mean a loss of revenue to the town to the magnitude of £300,000 per year. Kildare is a small town which can ill-afford such a loss to traders.

My colleague, Councillor Jim Keane, placed a picket on the office as a result of the closure. He informed me that he has received the full support of almost everyone using the office and of passersby who believe the office should not be permitted to close. I understand an offer has been made to the Department for a take-over of the franchise and this should be fully investigated and granted. Kildare has probably the best motorways in the country, however there is a great lack of transport throughout the county. This will create major problems for people living in these catchment areas who must travel to areas where the payments are made.

Many people in receipt of social welfare payments visit the community welfare officer in relation to other matters. If the Kildare branch closes, these people will have to travel to Newbridge, Portarlington, Athy or wherever. This will place an extra cost burden on these people who must travel to Kildare town to visit the community welfare officer and will cause further problems for people in receipt of social welfare payments.

I am pleased the Minister has come to the House and I ask him to consider seriously my points in relation to the loss of revenue to Kildare town and the problems which will be created for recipients of social welfare payments in terms of transport and visits to the community welfare officer. In many instances this is as important as the payments these people receive. I hope the Minister will give serious consideration to the retention of the office in Kildare town, even in the short-term, to allow many of the problems to be teased out. I hope many of these people will obtain full-time employment in the near future. I ask that in the short-term the office be kept open in its present form to ensure that transport for these people will not cost any more than at present and that a structure is put in place where a community welfare officer can facilitate them in the town to which they travel.

Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and for his remarks.

The manager of my Department's branch office in Kildare is due to retire with effect from 6 April this year. She has been employed on a contract basis as branch manager since 1 August 1973.

The current position is that 590 persons are registered as unemployed at the branch office. This includes 240 people who are within the six mile radius of the office and who sign on there once a month. The remaining 250 customers, who live more than six miles from the office, sign on at their nearest Garda station and are dealt with on a postal basis from the office. There are also a number of recipients of the farm assist scheme as well as systematic short-time workers registered at the office.

There is no question of disruption of payments to customers of the office on the retirement of the manager, since payments under the unemployment schemes are no longer made at branch offices but rather at local post offices. In the normal course, when a branch manager retires my Department examines the position with a view to establishing how best to provide a replacement service which will meet the needs of the people living in the area, taking account of the changing needs of customers and the changes in the way services will be delivered in future. Significant attention has been given in recent years to improving the level of customer service at my Department's offices through, for example, the provision of a modern and professional information service and a higher standard of accommodation at those offices. In addition, improvements have taken place in the processing of claims and in the level of ongoing contact and assistance provided to the people who depend on our services. It is my intention to continue to build on these improvements.

The question of how best to provide a modern service to the people of Kildare town and hinterland following the retirement of the branch manager is under consideration in my Department. A decision on the matter will be made in the coming weeks and I will notify the Deputy of the outcome. I assure the Deputy, however, that there will be no disruption of service in the meantime. The claimload will be managed by the Newbridge social welfare local office, which is the parent office of the Kildare branch office, pending a decision on the nature of the replacement of the service to be provided in Kildare. I guarantee the Deputy that I will take on board his comments.