Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 July 2006
432 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the schemes currently not covered by the Social Welfare Appeals Office; his plans to extend the remit of the Social Welfare Appeals Office to all or any of these schemes; the reasons the schemes not covered are not covered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26617/06]
View answerDecisions on statutory social welfare schemes are made by statutorily appointed Deciding Officers of my Department or, in the case of supplementary welfare allowance, by appointed officers of the Health Service Executive. Where a customer is dissatisfied with a decision made by a Deciding Officer, s/he has a statutory right of appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office. Where a customer is dissatisfied with a decision on his/her supplementary welfare allowance, s/he may appeal in the first instance to a designated Appeals Officer of the Health Services Executive and, if dissatisfied with that outcome, may appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.
In addition to statutory schemes a number of non-statutory schemes are operated by my Department and decisions in relation to them are not made by Deciding Officers. Decisions are made by Officers of my Department based on published guidelines (available on my Department's website www.welfare.ie) setting out the conditions of entitlement. In relation to adverse decisions, or such schemes, a person is informed of his/her right to have his/her application reviewed by a higher officer of the Department.
The non-statutory schemes are as follows:
Household Benefits Package (which includes the electricity/gas allowance, the telephone rental allowance and the free television licence)
Free Travel
Back to Work Allowance
Back to Work Enterprise Allowance Scheme
Part-time Job Incentive Scheme
Back to Education Programmes
Education, Training and Development Option
National Fuel Scheme (including smokeless fuel allowance)
Back to School Clothing and Footwear Scheme.
