Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 October 2012
94. Deputy Olivia Mitchell asked the Minister for Finance the reason persons receiving illness benefit do not qualify for revenue job assistance until they are ill for 18 months or more while those unemployed or receiving jobseeker's benefit, jobseeker's allowance, one parent family, disability allowance, blind pension or invalidity pension qualify after 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45440/12]
View answerThe Revenue Job Assist allowance is available to two separate categories of individual:
(a) - an individual who, prior to taking up a qualifying employment, was continuously unemployed for the immediate period of 12 months and who was in receipt of either Jobseeker’s Benefit, Jobseeker’s Allowance or the One-Parent Family Payment. Individuals that sign for PRSI credits are also eligible for the scheme.
(b) - an individual who is within a category of persons approved by the Minister for Social Protection (with the consent of the Minister for Finance) for the purposes of the Job Assist Scheme. The individuals in this category are those who, prior to taking up a qualifying employment, were in receipt of either the Blind Person’s Pension, Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit.
An individual in receipt of illness benefit must, prior to taking up a qualifying employment, have been in receipt of that benefit for a continuous period of at least 18 months in order to qualify for the allowance. The main reason for this extended period is that it is possible that some individuals in receipt of illness benefit may be on sick leave from their job with the same job remaining open to them until they are capable of returning to work. A shorter qualifying period for such individuals could leave the Revenue Job Assist scheme open to abuse with no real new job creation element being provided.
