Written Answers Nos. 106-111
106. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will consider amending the legislation pertaining to what appears to be an unfair and inequitable aspect of the State contributory pension provision whereby an applicant is penalised for working during teenage school-going years by the inclusion of these years when averaging lifetime contributions on reaching pension age; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7120/14]
View answerThe State pension is a very valuable benefit and is the bedrock of the Irish pension system. Therefore, it is important to ensure that those qualifying have made a sustained contribution to the Social Insurance Fund over their working lives and the reform measures introduced to date go somewhat toward that goal. To ensure that the individual can maximise their entitlement to State pension all contributions paid over their working life from when they first enter insurable employment until pension age, is taken into account when assessing whether they are entitled to State pension and the level of their State pension entitlement.
Once over 16, the date a person enters into insurance is taken as the date used for averaging purposes in order to qualify for a State pension.
To qualify for a state pension a person must:
have at least 520 paid contributions and
satisfy a yearly average (a yearly average of 48 is required for a full rate pension).
The yearly average test has been in existence since 1961 when contributory pensions were first introduced. The scheme was designed with a view to ensuring that people could qualify for contributory pensions immediately and to suit a system where social insurance coverage was limited.
Under the pension reform programme, there is a plan to adopt a total contributions approach where the number of contributions paid over a work life will closely reflect the rate of payment received. For example, 30 years contributions (1560) could qualify a person for maximum State pension (contributory). A person would accumulate 1/30th of a pension for each year of contributions up to a maximum of 30/30ths inclusive of a certain number of credits. The introduction of new rate bands in September 2012 moves somewhat closer to this process. It had been planned to introduce this change in 2020 but in the context of changing demographics and longer working, this date may be brought forward.
The OECD Review of the Irish Pension System which was published in April 2013 also endorsed the move to a total rather than an average contributions test to determine entitlement to a State pension.
An increase for a qualified adult, which is a means tested payment may be made to an individual who does not qualify for a pension in their own right or qualifies for a lower rate of pension due to gaps in insurance or the means tested non-contributory pension may be available to an individual who meets the qualifying criteria.
107. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for Social Protection if people who transfer their social insurance credits to their spouse's tax free allowance are not eligible to apply for JobBridge; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7153/14]
View answer108. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for Social Protection her views on whether the requirement of an applicant for JobBridge to be in receipt of a social protection payment or signing on for credits might discriminate against young persons just out of school or college who do not have the required credited contributions to permit them to sign on for credits; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7154/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 107 and 108 together.
The eligibility to access JobBridge is based on the overall objective of labour market policy in ensuring a pathway to appropriate employment, training and education opportunities for those on the Live Register. JobBridge has been launched in this targeted way to allocate scarce exchequer resources fairly while ensuring that it does not displace the normal operation of the labour market, which is an essential element of Ireland’s economic recovery.
Participation on JobBridge requires an applicant to have a live qualifying claim in their own right and to have accumulated 3 months (78 days) in the previous 6 months on an eligible claim (Jobseekers Allowance, Jobseekers Benefit, One Parent Family Payment, Disability Allowance, signing for credits). These rules apply to young people in the same way as they do to all other jobseekers.
109. Deputy Paul J. Connaughton asked the Minister for Social Protection if a person in receipt of the one-parent family payment who returns to his or her native Nigeria, gets married and returns here to live with his or her children, who is not in receipt of any payment or material support from his or her spouse who remained in Nigeria, and who informs the Department of the marriage can continue to receive the one-parent family payment in view of the fact that the family in question is a one-parent family unit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7164/14]
View answerThe one-parent family payment (OFP) is a payment for persons who are bringing up a child or children without the support of a partner. In order to get this payment, a person must first meet certain qualifying conditions, satisfy a means test, and be habitually resident in the State.
The OFP payment, by its nature, is only payable to persons who are widowed, separated or divorced, unmarried (including one whose marriage has been annulled or civil partnership has been dissolved), or whose spouse is imprisoned. If a person who is in receipt of the OFP payment marries, entitlement to the payment ceases as and from the date of that person’s marriage.
In addition, OFP is only payable to persons who are not cohabiting. There are a number of criteria used when assessing cohabitation that takes into account living arrangements, financial arrangements, dependent children and the degree to which the couple present themselves as a couple. As such, the payment is not made in instances where a parent has a husband or wife or a partner, irrespective of distance unless they are separated and no longer in a relationship.
The outcome in specific cases will depend on the exact circumstances and detail of the claim.
110. Deputy Eoghan Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if she is considering incentivising retraining in certain areas, for example technology, by allowing persons taking part in such courses to maintain their jobseeker's benefit so they can afford to learn the necessary skills. [7169/14]
View answerThe major elements of my Department’s response to unemployment are set out in the Pathways to Work policy which is aimed at ensuring that as many as possible of the job vacancies that are created are filled by people from the Live Register, with a particular focus on those who are long term unemployed or at risk of long-term unemployment.
The Pathways to Work policy aims, with regards to supports for unemployed persons, to:
Provide all registered unemployed people with efficient, work-focused income supports together with access to the information and the advice required to help them plan and action a pathway back into employment.
Provide unemployed people, in particular people who are long-term unemployed and young unemployed people, with opportunities to enhance their job prospects through value-adding work experience, education and training activities.
As part of this, there are in place a number of supports that allow unemployed people to receive a payment, based on their underlying job-seekers payment, while engaging in re-training:
The Back to Education Allowance (BTEA) scheme run by my Department provides income maintenance for unemployed people returning to full-time further or higher education, including the full range of technology courses provided at these levels across universities, Institutes of Technology and further education colleges. Approximately 26,000 previously-unemployed people participated in the BTEA in the last academic year.
Former FÁS Training Centres (all of which will be part of the Education and Training Boards by the middle of this year) also provide full-time shorter training courses for unemployed people, either in the centres or through contracted external trainers. There is a wide range of courses, including technology-related. Participants receive a training allowance in lieu of their jobseeker payment while attending these courses.
The Momentum programme, delivered through FÁS in 2013, provides free education and training projects for 6,500 long-term unemployed jobseekers in four themes of activity. One theme is devoted to technology occupations i.e. ICT, digital media, gaming and telecommunications. Participants retain the equivalent of their prior welfare payment, under the BTEA provisions.
The Springboard Initiative in higher education offers free, part-time courses at Certificate, Degree and Masters levels. Information Communications Technology (ICT) has been identified as one of the areas with demand from employers for qualifications. Participants in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment can retain their payment by registering for the Part-Time Education Option at their local social welfare office.
Evening courses and blended learning technology courses are also available through the former FÁS Training Centres, for which participants can retain their social welfare payments.
In general, unemployed people taking up full-time training (other than of very short duration) are supported either through training allowances or through BTEA. In order to incentivise young people to take up training, those young people on a reduced social welfare payment (i.e. €100 or €144) see their payments increase up to €160 while attending full-time training or education programmes.
Those taking up part-time courses or more intensive short duration courses are supported the Part-time Education Option (PTEO) and Education Training and Development Option (ET&D). The PTEO allows participants to attend part-time day/evening or weekend courses of education or training and retain their jobseeker’s payment while an entitlement exists provided that they continue to satisfy the conditions of being available for and genuinely seeking employment on an on-going basis. The ET&D allows participants to attend certain courses of education, training or development of short duration and retain their jobseeker’s payment while an entitlement exists. Participants are exempt from engaging in job search but must be available for employment should an opportunity arise.
In addition to these education and training options, JobBridge (the National Internship Scheme) provides work experience placements for interns for a 6 month or a 9 month period. Participants retain their prior welfare payment and also receive an additional weekly top-up payment of €50. Placements are in a range of occupational areas, including technology-related. Some 6,400 people are currently participating on this scheme.
111. Deputy Seán Kenny asked the Minister for Social Protection when an appeal against the disallowance of illness benefit will be decided in respect of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 13. [7185/14]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals office has advised me that the payment of illness benefit to the person concerned was disallowed by a Deciding Officer following an examination by a Medical Assessor of the Department who expressed the opinion that she was capable of work.
An appeal was registered on 5th December 2013 and the Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that, in accordance with statutory requirements, the Department has been asked to provide the documentation in the case and the Deciding Officer's comments on the grounds of the appeal. In that context, the person concerned was invited to attend another examination by a Medical Assessor on the 24th January 2014. Following this examination the Medical Assessor also expressed the opinion that the person concerned was capable of work. Subsequently the person concerned submitted further medical evidence which was referred back to the Medical Assessor for their opinion on the 5th February 2014. At present the Social Welfare Appeals Office is awaiting a response from the Medical Assessor.
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.
