Written Answers Nos. 134-141
134. Deputy Patrick Nulty asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide in tabular form the yield or estimated yield from increasing the PRSI contribution rate by 1%, 2%, 3% and 4% for employees, and self-employed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30874/13]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy is not available at present. When the information becomes available, my Department will furnish it to the Deputy directly.
135. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of Intreo offices opened across the country on a county basis; the cost of rebranding, new stationary and facilities and refurbishment of each office; the cost of overall website rebranding by her Department; if an external PR company was employed to develop or undertake the rebranding; the cost of such external companies employed by her Department; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30883/13]
View answerThe Pathways to Work document states that the introduction of the new Intreo service is a multi-annual project with all Department local offices upgraded to full Intreo offices by the end of 2014.
The delivery of the Intreo service comprises a number of elements. The main elements being:
i.- The integration of the various welfare decision making processes to speed up decision making and minimise recourse to supplementary welfare payments.
ii. - The implementation of a systematic activation process based on profiling of clients.
iii. - The delivery of a ‘one-stop-shop’ service from an integrated office location.
The first ten Intreo offices, with all elements in place, went live in 2012. These first ten offices were Sligo, Arklow, Tallaght, Kings Inns, Ballymun, Buncrana, Coolock, Dundalk, Finglas and Killarney.
A further two Intreo offices have now opened in Newcastlewest and Blanchardstown. It is intended to have the full service available from a total of approximately 40 offices this year and to complete the full roll-out of all service elements to all 63 offices of the Department in 2014. As part of this process it is intended to complete the roll-out of elements (i) and (ii) above to all offices during 2013. Element (iii) requires infrastructural works in many office locations and therefore has a longer timeline.
Costs arising during the development of the new service identity related to the initial design and design implementation, some translation costs, the cost of royalty free images and trademark search & registration. The costs for these elements amounted to €59,516.
A particular effort was made to keep costs down during the development of the new identity, through procuring services via public tender from various suppliers to ensure cost effectiveness. The initial work on the development of the identity and new name and logo of the new service was carried out by Creative Inc. Following a separate tender, work on the implementation of the new name and identity in the Department’s offices was carried out by Language Ltd.
With regard to the costs for facilities and refurbishment, twelve offices are now providing the full Intreo service and preparations are underway in other offices. Some of the Department’s existing buildings will require minor structural works, while other buildings because of their condition, health and safety issues or limited space availability will either need major works or replacement offices to be sought. Expenditure on the rollout of Intreo offices to date is estimated at almost €2m. The costs for the remainder of 2013 are not yet known and will be contingent on the contract prices finalised with the contractors on each project. These costs are kept under close scrutiny as the Department is committed to securing value for money in implementing the introduction of the various elements of the service. A breakdown of costs on the twelve offices that have been completed is shown in the following table.
The cost for stationary is not done on an office by office basis, but rather on a centralised system with office locations placing orders when needed.
|
County |
Location |
Structural * |
External Signage |
Internal Signage |
Ancillary ** |
Total |
|
Donegal |
Buncrana |
96,821 |
3,148 |
1,180 |
2,335 |
103,484 |
|
Dublin |
Ballymun |
45,665 |
3,148 |
1,020 |
6,071 |
55,904 |
|
- |
Blanchardstown |
285,541 |
3,148 |
1,620 |
46,300 |
336,609 |
|
- |
Coolock |
147,973 |
3,148 |
1,930 |
9,390 |
162,441 |
|
- |
Finglas |
- |
3,148 |
6,027 |
9,175 |
|
|
- |
Parnell Street |
54,305 |
6,210 |
7,220 |
28,810 |
96,545 |
|
- |
Tallaght |
220,040 |
6,508 |
4,210 |
82,999 |
313,757 |
|
Kerry |
Killarney |
69,518 |
3,148 |
3,754 |
7,740 |
84,160 |
|
Limerick |
Newcastlewest |
347,073 |
3,148 |
Invoice o/s*** |
31,514 |
381,735 |
|
Louth |
Dundalk |
197,665 |
3,148 |
1,100 |
12,160 |
214,073 |
|
Sligo |
Sligo |
66,300 |
13,090 |
5,707 |
30,980 |
116,077 |
|
Wicklow |
Arklow |
98,600 |
6,990 |
2,550 |
7,800 |
115,940 |
*Structural relates to building works including mechanical and electrical installations.
**Ancillary relates to items such as Furniture, Fittings, Decorating/Painting, Electronic Queuing Systems and Security, which includes installation/upgrade of CCTV and alert systems.
***Awaiting invoice to authorise payment.
With regard to the development of the Department’s website there was no cost involved in making changes to the Department’s website www.welfare.ie in advance of the launch of the Intreo service in October 2012.
As a separate project the Department's website www.welfare.ie was re-developed and re-launched in January 2013. The re-development of the www.welfare.ie website represents the first phase of a multiple programme of planned activity in website/online services of the Department. It incorporates the major expansion of the Department in recent times and aligns the site with the Department’s priorities, including the activation of jobseekers and information and services for employers. It will also facilitate the delivery of more online services for customers.
As part of the overall re-development, a dedicated Intreo area was created on the site, through which employers and jobseekers can access all existing information and services in relation to supports, training and entitlements. The web pages in this area of the site use a different colour scheme to that used in other areas of the site, but this was developed as part of the overall re-development package, at no extra cost to the project. The Intreo logo is used in the header of all web pages and on all Intreo-related pages; this was implemented as part of the overall re-development of the header and no extra cost was incurred for its inclusion.
The Department awarded a contract for IT consultancy support for the design, development and implementation of a new www.welfare.ie website on 7th September 2012 to Hewlett Packard. The contract includes on-going maintenance and support of the website for three years. The total cost involved is €463,380 (excluding VAT).
136. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide in tabular form the number of individual case officers operating under Intreo on a county basis; the average number of active cases per officer; the average number of meetings with clients per officer; the average number of unemployed in the county per officer; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30884/13]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy is not readily available. I will be in touch with him directly with the information as soon as possible.
137. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Social Protection the amount of money spent on the re-training of Intreo officers in 2012 and to date in 2013; the average length of re-training; if external companies and private contractors were involved in the re-training; if on-going training sessions are available to staff; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30885/13]
View answerThe Department’s Intreo initiative is being progressively rolled out to its national network of local offices. Key elements of the new service include activation measures such as client profiling, early group engagement and one-to-one meetings which focus on customised employment supports and monitoring of each client’s progress. In addition, an integrated decision-making process leading to quicker decisions and an integrated reception providing a one-stop-shop incorporating all strands of the Department’s employment and income support services are part of the new service.
The Intreo roll-out is being supported by a training and development plan for all offices to equip staff and management to deliver this new service.
The Department’s centralised training section, Staff Development Unit, works in partnership with a dedicated Intreo Project Team and local management to address identified training needs for each Office in preparation for the provision of the new service to customers. All of the training is being developed and delivered by in-house training resources and, to date, there has been no expenditure on external providers for Intreo-related training. Where additional training is required following the introduction of the new service, this is provided on an ongoing basis.
Management and staff are receiving training in a range of areas including decision-making, the habitual residence condition, community welfare service awareness, customer service, change management, non-violent crisis intervention, presentation skills and internal IT systems training. These training programmes range from one half-day session to two weeks in duration.
Former FÁS Employment Service Officers, who joined the Department in January 2012, undertook Adult Guidance and Education training at NUI Maynooth as part of their role-specific development. They continue to use these skills in their daily interaction with customers regarding activation into employment or education.
The Department is currently developing a training course for newly-appointed Case Officers to equip them with the skills necessary to operate in this new role and this may include an external training element.
In addition, the Department is beginning a process to review and redesign its functional training programmes, focusing on the business skills required for key frontline roles in the organisation, with a view to preparing these programmes for future accreditation. A Request For Tender will issue in this regard later this year.
138. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of medical assessors and medical officers available to the social welfare appeals office as appeals that may require medical assessment have the longest processing times especially for carer's allowance, 46 weeks, invalidity pension, 40 weeks, illness benefit, 40 weeks and disability allowance, 38 weeks; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30915/13]
View answerThere are currently 23 Medical Assessors employed in my Department, including the Chief Medical Adviser and the Deputy Chief Medical Adviser and all of the staff in question serve on a full-time basis. All Medical Assessors undergo training to assess all the various illness related schemes including appeals cases.
Since 2009, the cadre of Medical Assessors has been generally between 23-25 but the volume of assessment work has increased substantially due to involvement in new schemes and the levels of training required for these. Backlogs have then arisen in cases due for assessment (including appeals cases) due to the combination of increased work volumes and a number of retirements/Medical Assessors on leave including sick leave/maternity leave etc.
As an exception to the current moratorium on recruitment in the civil and public service, my Department received sanction from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to hold a competition to appoint Medical Assessors, with a view to filling critical vacancies that had arisen following the retirement of a number of serving Medical Assessors.
In addition, and in view of the critical control role that Medical Assessors play in assessing and reviewing illness related claims, sanction was also given to appoint additional Medical Assessors to fill vacancies which will be due to arise in the near future as a result of retirements.
A public competition, administered on behalf of my Department by the Public Appointments Service (PAS), was held in 2012. At the time of the interviews, four Medical Assessors had retired. Fourteen people were placed on the panel that was established following completion of the competitive process.
To date seven Medical Assessors have been appointed from this panel, three of whom took up duty in November 2012, with a further three commencing in March, 2013 and the most recent appointment was in early June, 2013. Five of those placed on the panel have subsequently withdrawn from the process.
My Department has continued to liaise with the PAS with a view to appointing the two remaining candidates at the earliest opportunity. In this regard, two offers of appointment have been issued and the new Medical Assessors are expected to take up their positions in Autumn, 2013.
I place great emphasis on ensuring that all claims including appeals cases are processed and reviewed in a timely manner and I am very pleased that the Department has been able to fill these critical vacancies and to frontload the appointment of additional Medical Assessors in advance of retirement thereby enabling the Department to deliver a quality service to our customers.
139. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Social Protection the annual cost of introducing two weeks paid paternity leave. [30931/13]
View answerWhile male employees are not entitled under Irish law to either paid or unpaid paternity leave, they may be entitled to parental leave. Parental leave entitles parents who qualify to take a period of up to 18 weeks of unpaid leave from employment, generally in respect of children aged up to eight years. There is no provision for a social insurance based payment for periods of parental leave, but employees may be entitled to credited contributions to maintain their social insurance record for the period.
The introduction of paid parental leave or paternity leave would have significant cost implications for employers, the Exchequer and the social insurance fund. In addition, the question of introducing a paternity benefit payment would depend on establishing an underlying entitlement to statutory paternity leave in the first instance and in the case of paternity leave would require legislation on the part of the Minister for Justice and Equality.
140. Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for Social Protection the way any proposed changes to the treatment of the self-employed for PRSI contributions or benefits will apply to a person (details supplied) in County Cork; when the proposed legislation will be introduced; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30964/13]
View answerSelf-employed persons are liable for PRSI at the Class S rate of 4% which entitles them to access long-term benefits such as State pension (contributory) and widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's pension (contributory).
In 2011 I established the Advisory Group on Tax and Social Welfare to meet the commitment made in the Programme for Government. The Advisory Group is charged with, inter alia, examining and reporting on issues involved in providing social insurance cover for self-employed persons in order to establish whether or not such cover is technically feasible and financially sustainable.
The Advisory Group’s overall method of working is based on producing modular reports on the priority areas identified in the Terms of Reference. Where possible, the aim is to provide recommendations that can be acted upon in time for the annual budget, estimates and legislative cycle and to allow the Government to best address its commitments under the EU-IMF Programme of Financial Support. The Group's report on the issues involved in providing social insurance cover for self-employed persons so as to establish whether or not such cover is technically feasible and financially sustainable was submitted to me in May 2013.
Any proposal to change the treatment of the self-employed for PRSI contributions/benefits arising from the Group’s report could only be considered in a Budgetary context.
Self-employed persons whose businesses fail or suffer from reduced demand may, however, access social welfare support by establishing entitlement to assistance-based payments such as jobseeker’s allowance. They can apply for the means-tested jobseeker’s allowance if their business ceases or if they are on low income as a result of a downturn in demand for their services. In general, their means will take account of the level of earnings in the last twelve months in determining their expected income for the following year and, in the current climate, account is taken of the downward trend in the economy. As in the case of a non-self-employed claimant for jobseeker’s allowance, the means of husband/wife, civil partner or co-habitant will be taken into account in deciding on entitlement to a payment.
141. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding an appeal for disability allowance in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Limerick; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30977/13]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 30th April 2013. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When these have been received, the appeal in question will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions on social welfare entitlements.
