Written Answers Nos. 179-193
179. Deputy Luke 'Ming' Flanagan asked the Minister for Social Protection if steps will be taken to ensure that more choice will be given to those with disabilities and their families on the way they can allocate their disability allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51612/13]
View answerDisability Allowance is a means-tested income support payment for people with a specified disability whose income falls below certain limits and who are aged between 16 and 66. The manner in which the payment is utilised is a matter for the claimant or, in certain cases, his/her guardian.
Issues relating to the development of individualised systems of resource allocation for people with disabilities are associated with the manner of the provision of disability support services and are, accordingly, more relevant to the Minister for Health.
180. Deputy Pat Breen asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding jobseeker's allowance in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Limerick; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51685/13]
View answerI am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an oral hearing of the appeal of the person concerned took place on 13 November 2013 and that the Appeals Officer is now considering the appeal in the light of all of the evidence submitted, including that adduced at the oral hearing. The person concerned will be notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision when the appeal has been determined.
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.
181. Deputy Pat Breen asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding an application for invalidity pension in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Clare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51711/13]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 1 August 2013. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought from the Department of Social Protection. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 21 October 2013 and the case will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on 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 in relation to social welfare entitlements.
182. Deputy Pat Breen asked the Minister for Social Protection when a decision on a disability benefit appeal will issue in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Clare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51713/13]
View answerI am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an oral hearing of the appeal of the person concerned took place on 14 November 2013 and that the Appeals Officer is now considering the appeal in the light of all of the evidence submitted, including that adduced at the oral hearing. The person concerned will be notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision when the appeal has been determined.
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.
183. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Minister for Social Protection the circumstances in which a community welfare officer may exercise discretion and pay rent allowance to a separated spouse with a housing need who has left the family home, which is jointly in the names of both spouses, but because no formal separation agreement, judicial separation or divorce is in place has been deemed ineligible by a local authority pursuant to section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 for social housing support; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51755/13]
View answerThe purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. There are approximately 81,000 rent supplement recipients for which the Government has provided over €403 million for 2013. In order to qualify for a rent supplement a person must have been residing in private rented accommodation or accommodation for homeless persons or an institution (or any combination of these) for a period of 183 days within the preceding 12 months of the date of claim for rent supplement. A person may also qualify for rent supplement where an assessment of housing need has been carried out within the 12 months preceding the date of claim and the person is deemed by a housing authority to be eligible for and in need of social housing support. In all other cases, a person who wishes to apply for rent supplement is referred, in the first instance, for an assessment of eligibility for social housing support by a housing authority. Only when the person has been assessed as being eligible for and in need of social housing support, does the person become eligible for consideration for rent supplement. Policy in relation to eligibility for social housing and housing needs assessment is a matter for the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government.
Department officials operating the supplementary welfare allowance scheme have discretionary powers to award a supplement in exceptional cases where it appears that the circumstances of the case so warrant. Each case is examined individually and is decided on the basis of the situation presented. There is no general guidance to direct or limit this discretion which is seen as a key element of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme.
184. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Social Protection the extent of her and her officials interaction with the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority since its establishment; the extent of the Pensions Board's interaction with the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority since its establishment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51768/13]
View answerEIOPA is the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and is composed of high level representatives from the insurance and occupational pensions supervisory authorities of the European Union's Member States. EIOPA’s main goals are:- Better protecting consumers, rebuilding trust in the financial system;- Ensuring a high, effective and consistent level of regulation and supervision taking account of the varying interests of all Member States and the different nature of financial institutions;- Greater harmonisation and coherent application of rules for financial institutions & markets across the European Union;- Strengthening oversight of cross-border groups;- Promote coordinated European Union supervisory response.
The Department of Social Protection does not have day to day interaction with EIOPA. Rather, this function falls to The Pensions Board as the Regulator of occupational pensions in Ireland. Ireland is represented on EIOPA’s ‘Board of Supervisors’ by the Chief Executive of The Pensions Board who also currently acts as Chairman of EIOPA’s Occupational Pensions Committee.
In addition, a number of Pensions Board staff participate on various EIOPA workgroups and committees which consider matters of common interest.
As an agency under the remit of the Department of Social Protection, the Pensions Board liaises with the Department regarding EIOPA activity as and when required.
185. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will expedite a disability allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51778/13]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 14 October 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 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.
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.
186. Deputy Noel Coonan asked the Minister for Social Protection when a decision on an invalidity allowance appeal will issue in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Tipperary; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51850/13]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 9 September 2013. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought from the Department of Social Protection. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 28 November 2013 and the case will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on 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 in relation to social welfare entitlements.
190. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Social Protection if defined benefit schemes that secure an exemption from the minimum funding standard will be covered by the provisions of the Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Bill. [51875/13]
View answerThe provision in the Social Welfare and Pensions (No.2) Bill will not apply to schemes which are excluded from the requirements of the Funding Standard.
191. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide in tabular form details of JobBridge internships that have been offered in VEC premises in County Donegal since the commencement of the scheme; the number of these that have been completed and reoffered; the number of interns that have subsequently become employed by the VEC; the location of the premises in which they became employed; the number of full time positions that have been advertised by the VEC in County Donegal for positions previously filled by JobBridge interns; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51891/13]
View answer192. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Social Protection if there are any barriers to a person who has completed a JobBridge internship subsequently being offered a subsequent JobBridge internship or community employment scheme while they remain a jobseeker; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51892/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 191 and 192 together.
A table giving the number of JobBridge internships with Donegal Education and Training Board follows. There have been a total of 82 JobBridge internships with Donegal ETB, of which 36 are currently active and 46 have been completed. Of the 46 finishers, the Department’s records indicate that 3 of these interns went directly into paid employment with Donegal ETB. A further 6 finishers immediately progressed into employment with another organisation at the end of their internship.
The Department considers that it is important to offer interns public sector internships for four reasons: first, because, despite the recruitment embargo, there are many high-quality, real-workplace positions that can give the intern the new skills and experiences that they can use to bridge the gap to the rest of their working lives; second, because public sector internships continue to be in demand by interns who choose them voluntarily and in the knowledge of the recruitment embargo; third, precisely because of the recruitment embargo, filling those positions is certainly not displacing an employee; and fourth, because of the high rates of progression into employment with other organisations that are still exceptionally high by comparison with the Live Register in general.
The independent evaluation of JobBridge conducted by Indecon Economic Consultants found that there is a higher rate of employment among participants who completed their internships in private sector organisations. Encouragingly, however, 41.2% of all participants who undertook their internship in a public sector organisation progressed into paid employment.
A JobBridge intern may undertake up to 3 internships for a maximum cumulative period of 18 months. Any individual who has not reached those maxima may apply for a further internship.
Table 1. JobBridge Internships with Donegal ETB
|
Donegal Education & Training Board |
Completed |
Current |
Total |
|
|
Got job elsewhere |
6 |
6 |
||
|
Got job with Host Organisation |
3 |
3 |
||
|
Total Internships |
46 |
36 |
82 |
193. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will publish the social impact assessment of budget 2014; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51951/13]
View answerMy Department is currently preparing an analysis of the Budget 2014 tax and welfare packages. This Social Impact Assessment will include an analysis of the distributive and poverty impacts of these changes on different family types as well as the impact on at risk of poverty levels. Social impact assessment is an evidence-based methodology which uses a tax/welfare simulation model developed by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) to estimate the likely distributive effects of budgetary measures on income and social inequalities.
I understand that my officials are liaising with the ESRI at present in relation to some technical modelling issues in order to ensure that the analysis captures as many of the main taxation measures announced in the recent Budget as is feasible. I will be examining the analysis when it is finalised and I will publish it in due course.
