Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 11 May 2006
64 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will have examinations made into the possibility of awarding an appropriate employment related payment to sufferers of pneumoconiosis in view of the permanent nature of the illness and its causes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17536/06]
View answer122 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of people currently in receipt of occupational injury or other disability or disablement payment on the grounds of suffering from pneumoconiosis if he will consider improving such payments to take account of the occupational nature of the illness and award those so affected with a specific payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17827/06]
View answer131 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will review the number of people receiving a payment on the grounds of suffering from pneumoconiosis the number of such people who are not receiving a full payment on the basis of suffering from other ailments; if he will consider awarding full payment on the basis of having contracted pneumoconiosis in view of the fact that coalmines in the UK have had their illness similarly recognised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17836/06]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 64, 122 and 131 together.
Pneumoconiosis is a prescribed disease for the purpose of the Occupational Injuries Benefit scheme administered by my Department. The legislation governing the Occupational Injuries Scheme provides entitlement to benefit for persons suffering from certain prescribed diseases which are listed in the legislation and where that person has contracted that disease in the course of their employment.
Where a person has contracted one of the diseases listed in the legislation, benefits are payable if they were employed in an occupation which is specifically prescribed in relation to that disease. In addition, benefits may be payable if the claimant can show that the disease was contracted through an employment not specifically prescribed in relation to that disease.
Employment under a contract of service as a miner is insurable for Occupational Injuries Benefit under the Social Welfare Acts. Miners who are unable to work due to an accident arising from their employment may be entitled to occupational injury benefit for the first 26 weeks of their claim. If their incapacity extends beyond that period they may receive Disability Benefit or Invalidity Pension, subject to meeting the qualifying conditions for these payments.
Miners may be entitled to Disablement Benefit if they suffer a loss of physical or mental faculty as a result of an accident at work or a disease prescribed in legislation that they contracted at work. Medical assessments are undertaken in all such cases to determine the degree of disablement, which is calculated by comparison of the state of health of the applicant with a person of the same age and gender.
Persons claiming Occupational Injuries Benefit in cases of Pneumoconiosis are referred to Consultant Respiratory Physicians in the first instance for an examination and report. This examination consists of a clinical assessment and pulmonary function testing (PFT). Disablement benefit is awarded on the basis of the consultant's report, including the pulmonary function test result. The degree of disablement is expressed as a percentage of loss of faculty and the compensation payable varies accordingly.
Loss of faculty may be determined within a range of less than 1% to 100%, depending on the severity of the condition. A person must be assessed as having a minimum of 20% loss of faculty before they may be considered as being incapable of work due to his or her disablement. There is no reason, medical or otherwise, to award 100% disablement automatically in the case of Pneumoconiosis.
There are 21 persons currently in receipt of Disablement Benefit under the Occupational Injuries scheme as a result of pneumoconiosis and 19 of these are former coal workers. Of this number, 7 are also in receipt of Retirement Pension, 4 are receiving Old Age (Contributory) Pension, 7 are in receipt of Invalidity Pension, 1 is in receipt of Unemployment Assistance and 2 are in employment.
An issue has been raised as to whether Chronic Emphysema and Bronchitis and/or asthma now known as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD) should not be included in the list of occupational prescribed diseases. COPD is a serious clinical condition and is not specifically linked to any particular occupation.
No EU State, other than the United Kingdom, includes COPD in their schemes equivalent to our occupational injuries scheme. The position in the United Kingdom is that their equivalent of Occupational Injuries Benefit may be paid to coal miners who have worked underground for at least 20 years and who are diagnosed as having Pneumoconiosis with considerable lung function loss. The effect of prescribing COPD was to enable a higher rate of payment to be made to some Pneumoconiosis sufferers in certain circumstances.
Where a person has qualified for occupational injuries benefits, the rate of benefit payable increases on an annual basis in line with the normal social welfare budget increases. In addition, where a person feels that his/her occupational injury has deteriorated since the assessment was made under the scheme, it is open to that person to apply for a review of the percentage calculated.
69 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the steps he will take to end the anomaly whereby emigrants who return are not entitled to the living alone allowance or free fuel allowance on equal terms as Irish pensioners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17370/06]
View answerThe living alone allowance, or living alone increase as it is now known, is an additional payment of EUR7.70 per week made to people aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments and who are living alone. It is also available to people under 66 years of age who are living alone and who receive payments under one of a number of invalidity type schemes. The increase is intended as a contribution towards the additional costs people face when they live alone. The increase is not a payment in its own right but one that is paid as a supplement to an Irish social welfare payment. As such, it cannot be paid to people without a social welfare entitlement or to those whose pension payments are made exclusively under the social security regimes of other countries. In relation to the latter, the needs of older people are often provided for in different ways by other countries. While the Irish system provides a basic pension, supplemented by allowances, increases and other benefits, the approach adopted by other countries can be very different involving, for instance, a pension based on pre-retirement earnings. The fact that a living alone increase is not paid by another administration should not be viewed as an anomaly but rather as a different approach to providing for the needs of older people. Accordingly, the payment of a living alone increase independent of an Irish welfare entitlement would not be appropriate.
It is of course open to recipients of pensions from other countries to apply for the old age non-contributory pension. In order to qualify for the old age non-contributory pension a person must satisfy a means test. The pension, including, where appropriate, a living alone increase, can be paid in addition to other pension income. Changes in the income disregard for non-contributory pensions announced in the Budget will help more people to qualify for a pension and improve the income of existing pensioners on reduced payments. In Budget 2006 the means disregard was increased by €12.40 per week to €20 per week.
The aim of the national fuel scheme is to assist householders on long-term social welfare or health service executive payments with meeting the cost of their additional heating needs during the winter season. Fuel allowances are paid for 29 weeks from September to mid-April. The allowance represents a contribution towards a person's normal heating expenses. In addition, many of the households concerned qualify for electricity or gas allowances. Budget 2006 provided for an increase in the rate of fuel allowance from EUR9.00 per week to EUR14.00 per week (EUR17.90 per week in designated smokeless areas).
In order to qualify for a fuel allowance a person must be receiving one of a number of designated payments, which range from long-term unemployment assistance to old age non-contributory pension, including both contributory and non-contributory payments. Pension payments made by other EU States or countries with which Ireland has a bilateral agreement are qualifying payments for the purposes of the scheme. In order to qualify for an allowance a person, and the other members of the household, must be unable to pay for their heating needs from their own resources. To fulfil this condition the household must satisfy a means test.
70 Mr. Noonan asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his plans to introduce a part-time unemployment payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17686/06]
View answerThe Unemployment Benefit scheme provides income support for people who have lost work and are seeking alternative employment. A fundamental qualifying condition for unemployment benefit is that a person must be available for full-time work. Where a person is employed for up to three days in a week, s/he may claim Unemployment Benefit in respect of the remainder of the week, subject to being available for full-time work. Benefit is not payable where a person is available for part-time work only. I recognise the development of a changing labour market with people wishing to have a choice of more flexible work patterns. In this context and to inform future policy in this area, a group has been set up under the Expenditure Review process to examine a number of issues, including the application of the unemployment payment scheme conditions to workers who are not employed on a full-time basis, including those available for part-time work only. The group is currently finalizing its report which I look forward to receiving in the near future.
72 Mr. Boyle asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his Department intends to reassess the criteria for the entitlement to the blind pension allowance in view of the nature of the case involving a person who is travelling to Scotland for their studies and has therefore been denied the right to the pension (details supplied). [17539/06]
View answerTo qualify for a blind pension from my Department, a claimant must satisfy a number of conditions. She/he must be age 18 years of age or over and must be so blind that she/he either cannot perform any work for which eyesight is essential or cannot continue in his/her ordinary occupation. In addition, the claimant must be habitually resident in the State and satisfy a means-test. A person who satisfies these conditions has an entitlement to the blind pension. However, the pension itself can only be paid when the claimant is present in the State. There is one exception to this rule. If a person in this State is getting a blind pension and she/he goes to reside in Northern Ireland, there is provision in legislation to allow the Department to continue to pay the blind pension for up to 5 years or until such time as she/he receives an equivalent payment from the appropriate authority of Northern Ireland, whichever occurs sooner. This provision has been in our legislation for many years.
The person concerned applied to my Department for a blind pension in September 2005. Her circumstances were investigated by a social welfare inspector who subsequently reported that she was a student at a third level college in Scotland where she was undertaking a four-year degree course. It was noted that she returns to the family home in Ireland during holiday periods and that she had to attend an eye specialist in Dublin every six weeks. Following examination of her case, a deciding officer of my Department determined that her application for pension had to be disallowed on the basis that she was not residing in the State. She was notified of this decision as well as her right of appeal against it to the independent social welfare appeals office. Following various representations received in this case, my Department is currently reviewing the entitlement to blind pension in this particular case. This review is expected to be finalised shortly at which stage I will be in touch with the Deputies concerned to advise them of the outcome.
75 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will give a commitment that the special nature and ethos of the community welfare service will not in any way be curtailed or frustrated; his views on strengthening SWA legislation to further enshrine its unique flexibility and ability to respond to need, as this feature is not always a characteristic of schemes administered and controlled by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17388/06]
View answerThe supplementary welfare allowance scheme is administered by the Community Welfare Service of the Health Service Executive on my behalf. The scheme is provided for under the Social Welfare Consolidation Act. That legislation currently provides that the scheme is administered by the Health Service Executive, under my general direction and control. The positive attributes of the service, to which the Deputy refers, reflect the values and objectives that I and my predecessors have set out over the years in giving the community welfare service that general direction and control. Policy is set by my Department and the scheme is funded in its entirety through the Social and Family Affairs Vote. As the Deputy is aware, the Government has decided that income support and maintenance schemes currently administered by the Health Service Executive, together with associated resources, should be transferred from the Executive to my Department. I welcome this decision as it provides an opportunity to bring about positive change for users of these services and for staff. This particular initiative has been mooted several times in the past — by the Report of the Commission on Social Welfare in 1986 and by the Review of Supplementary Welfare Allowances by the Combat Poverty Agency in 1991 — and is I believe the logical approach to provision of these services.
The community welfare service plays a very important role within the overall social welfare system. It ensures that no person in the state faces destitution for want of basic minimum resources. The service is responsive, flexible and the outcome focused. These are attributes for which there will be a continuing need into the future. I can assure the Deputy that the new arrangements will maintain and, where possible, enhance the service in those respects This initiative will have major implications for my Department's existing services and for the future delivery of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme. A working group, comprising officials from my Department, Finance, the Department of Health and Children and the Health Service Executive, has been established to fully assess these implications and progress implementation of the transfer. This will include consideration of the legislative changes that will be needed and, in that regard, I will consider any recommendations that may be made for strengthening the legislation with a view to improving the service.
The transfer is a major change for all involved but I am confident it will be embraced successfully and will ultimately further enhance the delivery of services to our customers, in particular those who are most disadvantaged in the community. The supplementary welfare allowance scheme itself is being reviewed as part of my Department's ongoing programme of expenditure reviews. The review is being carried out by a working group chaired by my Department and includes representatives of the Department of Finance and of the Health Service Executive. The work of the group is almost complete and its recommendations will be taken into account in the context of the future development of the scheme.
76 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the average amount of time a one parent family payment takes to process after all relevant documentation has been produced. [17563/06]
View answer77 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the average time period for a one parent family payment claim to be processed; and if he has satisfied himself with this timescale. [17557/06]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 76 and 77 together.
The one-parent family payment is a means tested payment that is intended to assist a lone parent who is bringing up a child or children without the support of a partner. In order to qualify for the one-parent family payment, an applicant must satisfy a number of statutory conditions. He or she must have the main care and charge of at least one child, must not be cohabiting, must, if earning, have gross earnings of less than €293.00 per week as a result of Budget 2006, this limit will rise to EUR375.00 from 29 June 2006) and must satisfy a means test. In addition, in appropriate cases, it is necessary to establish that efforts have been made to obtain maintenance from the former spouse or partner before a payment can be put into effect.
The administration of the one-parent family payment is in the process of being devolved to my Department's network of local offices around the country. There are currently 38 offices processing one-parent family payment applications. The scheme is being devolved with the primary aim of making it more accessible to lone parents. It will also be of value in helping lone parents to access information about employment, education and training opportunities in their own area, through my Department's local employment support services. Furthermore, devolving administration of the scheme has assisted in reducing claim processing times through closer linkage with the local investigative officer network. There are currently 38 offices processing one-parent family payment applications.
A priority of my Department is to provide the best possible service to customers across its schemes and to process new claims in the fastest possible times. In the four month period from the 1st January to 30th April 2006, the average number of weeks to decide a claim was 10.58 weeks. These statistics are based on the offices currently offering this service. A large majority of one-parent family payment applicants receive another social welfare payment while their claim is being processed. The main form of such support is supplementary welfare allowance or unemployment assistance while some claimants receive maternity benefit, unemployment benefit or disability benefit payments. The provision of these supports does not obviate the need to provide an efficient, courteous and speedy claim processing service to all one-parent family payment applicants.
I believe that the measures now being put in place will bring about a measurable improvement in the quality and timeliness of service to one-parent family payment applicants in the future.
81 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to instances where claims authorised by community welfare staff have been withheld, delayed or stopped by officials from within his Department; the procedures used in such cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17387/06]
View answerThe supplementary allowance (SWA) scheme is the "safety net" within the overall social welfare system in that, subject to qualifying conditions, it provides assistance to any persons in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants. SWA provides a minimum weekly allowance to eligible people who have insufficient means. The supplementary welfare allowance scheme is administered on my behalf by the Community Welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE). There are almost 700 Community Welfare Officers and 53 Superintendent Community Welfare Officers from over 1,000 sites responsible for the administration of the scheme. The administration of the scheme by the Health Service Executive is subject to my general direction and control in accordance with guidelines and circulars issued by my Department. The Health Service Executive can avail of informal advice and guidance from my Department. However, neither I nor my Department has any function in relation to decisions on individual claims.
There is however one area in which my Department is involved in the day-to-day administration of the scheme. This is in relation to financial controls in particular circumstances, for audit and security purposes. These arrangements affect a very small proportion of payments. If the Deputy has a particular case in mind, I will have the matter examined if he provides the relevant details. I would again reiterate that the arrangements I have outlined are purely an administrative control function and the actual decision as regards entitlement to supplementary welfare allowance rests solely at the determination of the Health Service Executive.
