Wednesday, 18 Sep 2013

Advisory Group on Tax and Social Welfare

Questions (672)

Andrew Doyle

Question:

672. Deputy Andrew Doyle asked the Minister for Social Protection the parameters of the main recommendations made by the advisory group on tax and social welfare in their third report on extending social insurance coverage for the self employed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38244/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

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. Any proposals for change must be cost neutral.

On 6 September 2013 I published 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.

The Group found that the current system of means tested jobseeker’s allowance payments adequately provides cover to self-employed people for the risks associated with unemployment. Consequently, the Group was not convinced that there was a need for the extension of social insurance for the self-employed to provide cover for jobseeker’s benefit.

The Group found that extending social insurance for the self-employed was warranted in cases related to long term sickness or injuries. To this end, the Group recommended that Class S benefits should be extended to provide cover for people who are permanently incapable of work because of a long-term illness or incapacity through the invalidity pension and the partial capacity benefit. The Group further recommended that the extension of social insurance in this regard should be on a compulsory basis and that the rate of contribution for Class S should be increased by at least 1.5 percentage points. This is in line with the estimated level of contributions needed to provide access for the self-employed to Invalidity Pension contained in the 2010 Actuarial Review of the Social Insurance Fund.

In the course of the Group’s deliberations, the Group identified a range of issues associated with the subject of social insurance for the self-employed that should be addressed and have made a number of recommendations in this regard. These include, among others, the means assessment for self-employed income in terms of accessing jobseeker’s allowance payments, credited PRSI contributions, self-employed access to activation and training schemes and the role that information campaigns might play in addressing information deficits, particularly with regard to entitlements to jobseeker’s allowance.

The question as to whether the present arrangements regarding social insurance for the self-employed are appropriate has increased in prominence over recent years. I welcome the Group’s finding that the current system of means tested Jobseeker’s Allowance payments adequately provides cover to self-employed people for the risks associated with unemployment.

The recommendation concerning long-term sickness or injuries is an important contribution to the policy debate regarding the range of benefits the self-employed might access through their social insurance contributions. In this regard, the 2010 Actuarial Review of the Social Insurance Fund, published last year, determined that the self-employed are obtaining better value for the level of their current social insurance contributions than employees (the Actuarial Review found that the effective annual rate of contributions needed to provide the core full-rate State pension (contributory), currently available to self-employed contributors, is approximately 15%).

This finding was noted by the Advisory Group in its recommendations. Consequently, the recommendations of the Advisory Group require further consideration in conjunction with the findings of the 2010 Actuarial Review relating to the level of contributions levied on Class S contributors and the current shortfall in this regard.

My colleagues in Government and I will now carefully reflect on the findings of the Advisory Group on this issue and will further consider the recommendations contained in the report taking into account future developments in terms of the budgetary and fiscal situation.

Jobseeker's Benefit Payments

Questions (673)

Ciaran Lynch

Question:

673. Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for Social Protection if it is compulsory that jobseeker's benefits are paid through the post office and the reason for same; if there are circumstances in which a client may opt to have payments made to a bank account; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38245/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

In line with the Department’s control policy, it is normal practice to pay jobseekers benefit and jobseekers allowance customers in the local post office. An exception may be made in certain circumstances where there may be difficulty in accessing the post office during normal working hours, such as while a person is undertaking a course of study under the Back To Education Programme, or while partaking of an internship under the Work Placement Programme or National Internship Programme. In these cases, payment may be made by electronic fund transfer directly into the customer’s bank account.

The Department’s future Payment Strategy, which was recently approved by Government, envisages a payments environment which is fully electronic and builds on current approaches to modernise the payment of welfare benefits. The Department recognises the importance of modernising welfare payment methods to our customers and to the wider Irish economy. The strategy is in line with wider Government policies and objectives on better public services and more effective e-payments, as set out in the Public Service Reform Plan and the eGovernment Strategy 2012-2015 and is aligned to the objectives of the recently published National Payments Plan. The migration to e-payments will be a gradual process and will be developed, implemented and achieved with strategies that complement and enhance the Department's fraud and control policies.

Disability Allowance Appeals

Questions (674)

Michael Healy-Rae

Question:

674. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding a disability allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38260/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal from the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer who has decided to hold an oral hearing in this case on 27th September 2013. The person concerned has been notified of the arrangements for the 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 in relation to social welfare entitlements.

Information and Communications Technology

Questions (675)

Jim Daly

Question:

675. Deputy Jim Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection the progress that has been made between her Department and the Revenue Commissioners on working to improve communications between the two organisations; if she will outline the improvements in the compatibility of the IT software used by both sections; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38281/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Department of Social Protection has a long history of communicating and working closely with the Revenue Commissioners. The two organisations have been successfully exchanging information through the use of ICT systems for many years.

A high level group established between the Department and the Revenue Commissioners coordinates issues of mutual concern, including information sharing, between the two organisations. Further information sharing initiatives are put in place as new requirements are identified and specified.

A good example of this is the recent implementation of the Local Property Tax where a facility was made available to work with the Revenue Commissioners to deduct the tax from certain payments issuing to DSP clients, where the client choose that payment option.

Regarding the compatibility of the IT software in use in both organisations, the requirement is to ensure that information can be readily exchanged between the organisations’ ICT systems, which it can. Specific information exchanges require that the information to be exchanged is agreed and that business processes in both organisations can make effective use of the information in question.

Money Advice and Budgeting Service Funding

Questions (676)

Pádraig MacLochlainn

Question:

676. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Social Protection the efforts made to ensure that additional resources are deployed to North Donegal Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, following recent confirmation that it has the longest waiting list of all MABS offices across the State at 20 weeks, five times the State average. [38292/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) , under the aegis of the Citizens Information Board, assists people who are over-indebted and need help and advice in coping with debt problems, in particular those on low incomes and people living on social welfare payments

In 2013, the Citizens Information Board has been allocated a budget of approximately €47.5 million of which some €19 million has been assigned to MABS. In 2012 the corresponding allocation was €46.8 million and €18.3million respectively.

There are 277 money advice staff employed nationwide by the individual MABS companies. In 2013 16 additional temporary staff have been assigned to MABS for the establishment of the Approved Intermediary Service for the purpose of processing Debt Relief Notices as part of the new Insolvency Service of Ireland.

The most recent statistics available on waiting times from the first point of contact to first appointment with a money adviser, compiled to end of June 2013, record that the average waiting time is some 4.4 weeks. Over half of MABS services have a waiting time of 4 weeks or less, 13 MABS services have a waiting time above 4 weeks but no more than 6 weeks and eight have a waiting time greater than 6 weeks.

North Donegal MABS has its main office in Letterkenny and a sub-office in Buncrana and provides a service to the North and Eastern part of the county. There are two other MABS offices in the county, one in the Gaeltacht area (Derrybeg) and one in South Donegal (Donegal town).

North Donegal MABS has experienced an increased demand for services over recent years. From a regional perspective CIB has been monitoring demand in the area and is working closely with the three Donegal-based MABS companies to address client demand in North Donegal. Staff have been redeployed from outreach services to the main Letterkenny office, the full approved staffing level has been restored following a long term absence and additional resources have also been provided. The service will continue to review its processes and resources and engage with the other MABS services to reduce its waiting times.

Money Advice and Budgeting Service

Questions (677)

Pádraig MacLochlainn

Question:

677. Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide the following information from each Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, office across the State; the numbers of persons availing of the service at that office in 2007 to 2012, inclusive, and to date in 2013, and the staff numbers in each office for 2007 to 2012, inclusive, and to date in 2013. [38293/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS), under the aegis of the Citizens Information Board, assists people who are over-indebted and need help and advice in coping with debt problems, in particular those on low incomes and people living on social welfare payments.

The Money Advice and Budgeting Service is made up of a network of 53 companies which includes 51 local companies, MABS National Development Limited and National Traveller MABS. There are 277 money advice staff employed nationwide by the individual MABS companies. In 2013, an 16 additional temporary staff have been assigned to MABS for the establishment of the Approved Intermediary Service for the purpose of processing Debt Relief Notices as part of the new Insolvency Service of Ireland.

The table below shows the number of persons availing of services at the local MABS offices together with the staff numbers in each of the offices from 2007 – 2013.

-	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of people availing of MABS Services	No of wte staff in each company	No of wte staff in each company	No of wte staff in each company	No of wte staff in each company	No of wte staff in each company	No of wte staff in each company	No of wte staff in each company
	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013 - to end June	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013 - to end June
Company
Arklow & District	207	260	210	328	440	451	257	3	3	3	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.5
Athlone	205	248	299	306	279	289	151	1.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5
Ballymun	471	550	566	475	447	336	147	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.4	5.9	5.9	5.92
Blanchardstown	398	428	374	462	506	579	334	4.7	4.7	4.7	5	5.25	5.25	5
Bray	427	663	794	895	807	800	431	4	4.6	4.6	5.5	5.5	5.5	5
Carlow	740	709	635	659	582	708	365	4.65	5.2	5.2	5.7	5.2	5.2	5.02
Cavan	246	283	476	623	569	597	271	3	4	4	4	4	4	4
Charleville	167	218	311	293	253	238	114	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Clare	304	372	547	584	640	572	283	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Clondalkin	315	341	357	397	422	607	288	4	5	5	5	4	4	5
Cork	1001	975	1246	1473	1455	1328	732	5.8	6.8	6.8	7.3	6.8	6.8	7.8
Cork North	314	424	469	543	592	503	249	3.1	4.1	4.1	4.4	4.4	4.4	4.4
Cork West	275	306	414	373	357	347	217	3	3	3	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.5
Donegal North	247	369	445	686	667	548	318	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
Donegal South	50	99	114	103	111	115	47	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Drogheda	233	283	367	437	820	665	365	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Dublin 10 + 20 (Comac)	261	467	518	560	541	454	214	4.8	5	5	5.9	5.5	5.5	5.4
Dublin 12 Area	321	306	350	416	365	344	184	3.2	4.2	4.2	4.2	5.1	5.1	4.3
Dublin North City	454	287	342	507	567	426	221	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Dublin North East	311	391	433	491	556	658	291	3.5	3.5	3.5	4	3	3	4
Dublin South East	272	225	229	287	316	317	203	3.6	3.6	3.6	4	3.6	3.6	3.6
Dun Laoghaire	388	463	478	551	556	336	255	3	4	4	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5
Dún na nGall Iarthar	44	48	79	90	83	99	53	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Dundalk/Oriel	167	236	326	228	448	402	165	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Dundrum/Rathfarnham	245	315	445	617	621	589	260	3.6	4.1	4.1	4.1	4	4	4.1
Fingal	260	270	331	450	513	531	246	4	4	4	4.5	4	4	5
Finglas/Cabra	459	494	452	637	795	680	293	5	5	5	4.9	5	5	5
Galway North	284	390	483	414	363	410	198	2.7	2.7	2.7	3.2	3.2	3.2	3.5
Galway South	587	703	682	826	953	955	507	5.5	5.5	5.5	7	7	7	7.5
Kerry	599	754	836	891	671	684	430	6	7	7	7	7	7	7
Kildare	465	541	540	564	566	1028	607	6.2	6.2	6.2	6.85	6.85	6.85	6.85
Kilkenny	285	363	444	437	441	482	226	4	4	4	4	4	4	4
Laois	302	463	603	612	667	645	273	3	3	3	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.5
Leitrim	102	139	164	173	186	176	67	2.1	2.6	2.6	2.6	3.1	3.1	2.5
Liffey South West	306	310	786	744	844	482	191	5	5	5	5	5.2	5.2	5.2
Limerick	185	624	658	671	506	520	283	5	5	5	6	6	6	6
Longford	109	152	239	309	314	526	271	2	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5
Mayo North	131	124	200	222	255	205	98	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Mayo South	185	241	267	362	346	330	177	3.2	3.2	2.8	3	3.3	3.3	3.5
Meath	342	467	767	352	726	642	193	4	4	4	4	5	5	4
Monaghan	110	161	222	197	205	243	88	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Mullingar	222	256	360	393	435	390	248	3.1	3.1	3.1	2.8	2.5	2.5	2.5
Offaly	148	224	243	270	416	394	145	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Roscommon	114	184	242	217	268	256	120	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Sligo	178	241	286	370	358	404	190	2	3	3	3	3.5	3.5	3.5
Tallaght	395	507	543	662	703	742	359	4	4	4	5	5	5	5
Tipperary North	195	241	311	420	416	490	251	3	3	3	3.5	4.5	4.5	3.5
Tipperary South	374	586	693	834	803	712	406	5.5	5.5	5.5	5.7	5.6	5.6	5.6
Waterford	495	683	990	1086	1296	1115	529	5.5	5.5	5.5	6.7	5.9	5.9	5.9
Waterford West	154	239	224	266	278	314	201	2	2.1	2.1	2	2.2	2.2	2.2
Wexford	308	419	572	511	569	498	244	4	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5	4.5
Total	15,357	19,042	22,962	25,274	26,893	26,162	13,256	188.45	200.9	200.5	213.75	213.6	213.6	214.29

Carer's Allowance Appeals

Questions (678)

Jack Wall

Question:

678. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding a carer's allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38304/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all the evidence has disallowed the appeal of the person concerned. The person concerned has been notified of the decision.

Carer's Allowance Appeals

Questions (679)

Ciaran Lynch

Question:

679. Deputy Ciarán Lynch asked the Minister for Social Protection when a determination will be made in an appeal for carer's allowance in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38308/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 28th June 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 papers have been received from the Department, 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.

Social Welfare Appeals Delays

Questions (680, 702, 704)

Jack Wall

Question:

680. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Minister for Social Protection her plans to address the delays in the appeal mechanism for social protection appeals for all of the social protection payments in view of the fact that some appellants have to wait up to eight months for a date for a hearing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38325/13]

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Catherine Murphy

Question:

702. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection her plans to allocate more appeals officers to cases ongoing for more than a calendar year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38775/13]

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Catherine Murphy

Question:

704. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if her attention has been drawn to the long periods of time that appellants must wait for an oral hearing to be scheduled; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38778/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

I propose to take Questions Nos. 680, 702 and 704 together.

There has been a rapid and sustained increase in the number of appeals received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office since 2009 which has placed extraordinary pressure on the office. Up to 2009, the average number of appeals received was 15,000 per annum whereas in 2012, the office received 35,484 appeals. In order to manage this increasing workload, significant resources and efforts have been put into reducing backlogs and improving appeals processing times for appellants, including the assignment of 15 additional Appeals Officers, in addition to 10 former Community Welfare Service Appeals Officers who joined the appeals office in 2011, bringing the total number of serving Appeals Officers to 41; reviewing and improving business processes; and implementing a new operating model within the appeals office.

In addition, a major programme of process redesign and modernisation is currently underway in the Department in relation to many of its scheme areas, aimed at reducing backlogs and reducing the time taken by the Department to respond to requests from the appeals office for submissions in relation to appeals.

These measures have led to improvements in processing times and a significant increase in the number of appeals finalised from 17,787 in 2009 to 32,558 in 2012. The Chief Appeals Officer expects to finalise 6,000 more cases in 2013 than in 2012. Good progress is also now being made in reducing the number of appeals on hand from 20,414 at 1 January 2013 to 17,041 at 16 September 2013.

The average waiting time for appeals peaked in 2011 when the average time for an oral hearing was 52.5 weeks and for a summary decision was 25.1 weeks. In 2012 these times improved by 10.3 weeks when the average time for an oral hearing dropped to 39.5 weeks while the time for a summary decision increased slightly to 27.8 weeks. This improvement has continued with the average processing time up to August 2013 reducing to 35.4 weeks for an oral hearing and 27.1 weeks for a summary decision.

These processing times are calculated from the registration date of the appeal to the date of its finalisation. They include all activities during this period including time spent awaiting any clarification from the appellant, time in the Department for comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal put forward by the appellant, and any further investigation, examination or assessment by the Department’s Inspectors and Medical Assessors that is deemed necessary. A considerable period of time is added to the process when an oral hearing is required because of the logistics involved in this process. While this process carries an inherent delay in terms of finalising an appeal, it also crystalises the flexibility and accessibility of the appeals system.

By its nature and because it is a quasi-judicial function, the processing of appeals takes time and reflects the fact that, by definition, the appeal process cannot be a quick one.

Domiciliary Care Allowance Appeals

Questions (681)

Seán Ó Fearghaíl

Question:

681. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will expedite an appeal of an application for domiciliary care allowance in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38360/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all the evidence has allowed the appeal of the person concerned. The person concerned has been notified of the decision.

Disability Allowance Appeals

Questions (682)

Tom Fleming

Question:

682. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will expedite a decision on a disability allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38362/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer on 30th August 2013, who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing.

Question No. 683 answered with Question No. 627.

Community Employment Scheme Operating Guidelines

Questions (684)

Michael Lowry

Question:

684. Deputy Michael Lowry asked the Minister for Social Protection if her attention has been drawn to the changes made to the Community Employment Manual, updated earlier this year; if she will detail the impact of these changes on community employment scheme supervisors; if she will clarify the impact these changes will have on the ability of a supervisor to carry out voluntary work in their own time; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38390/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The policy to which the Deputy is referring to has been in the Community Employment Operating Guidelines/Procedures since the programme commenced in 1994, as follows:

A Community Employment Supervisor cannot be a member of any CE project’s Sponsoring Committee or CE Project Management Committee.

A Community Employment Participant cannot be a member of their CE project’s Sponsoring Committee or CE Project Management Committee.

This does not preclude membership or participation in any other entity which is a matter for the individual themselves.

Compliance with the CE Operating Procedures is part of the contractual agreement between the CE Sponsor and the Department of Social Protection.

Disability Allowance Appeals

Questions (685)

Martin Heydon

Question:

685. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for Social Protection if an appeal for disability allowance will be expedited in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38392/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 26th July 2103. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 8th August 2013 and the case 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.

If the means of the person concerned are insufficient to meet her needs, it is open to her to contact her local Community Welfare Service to ascertain whether she may be entitled to Supplementary Welfare Allowance.

Carer's Allowance Appeals

Questions (686)

Tom Fleming

Question:

686. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will expedite a carer's allowance overpayment appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38393/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Social Protection

The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 2nd September 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 papers have been received from the Department, the case 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 appeal hearing.