Written Answers Nos. 379-403
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Written Answers Nos. 379-403
379. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will ensure that a person (details supplied) in Dublin 6 will be provided with the rent allowance they are entitled to as a matter of urgency as they are currently facing an eviction threat; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29223/14]
View answerThe person concerned applied for rent supplement on 15th May 2014. She was requested to provide further documentation in support of her application in order that her claim could be processed. The outstanding information was provided on 30th June 2014, and as a result her application has now been approved. She has been sent written notification of this decision and her first payment which will include the arrears due to her will be issued on 10th July 2014.
380. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the progress to date in determination of an appeal for carer's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Meath; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29259/14]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 9th May 2014. 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.
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.
381. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the progress to date in determination of an appeal for carer's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare who cares for her mother on a full time basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29260/14]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 7th February 2014. 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 the 9th June 2014 and the case was referred to an Appeals Officer 23rd June 2014 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.
382. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the progress to date in determination of appeal for carer's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29263/14]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on the 24th January 2014. 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 the 13th June 2014 and the case was referred to an Appeals Officer on the 23rd June 2014 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.
383. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the progress to date in determination of an appeal for carer's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29264/14]
View answerCarer’s allowance was stopped on 26th February 2014 following a review on the grounds that the care recipient was found to no longer require full time care and attention as prescribed in regulations. The person in question appealed this decision and submitted additional medical evidence in support of their application. However, following review by a deciding officer of all the evidence in this case, the decision to disallow has been confirmed. All the necessary papers have recently been submitted to the Social Welfare Appeals Office for determination. The Social Welfare Appeals Office will be in touch with the person directly regarding the progress of the appeal.
384. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if and when an oral hearing will take place in respect of an appeal for carer's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare, if and when a decision is expected to issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29266/14]
View answerThe 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 8th July 2014. 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.
385. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the progress to date in determination of an appeal for carer's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29267/14]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 23rd May 2014. 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.
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.
386. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of bills her Department has published since March 2011; the number of regulatory impact assessments that her Department has published since March 2011; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29299/14]
View answerI have published nine Bills since taking office, eight of which have been enacted. Details of these Bills are set out in the table.
Regulatory Impact Analyses (RIAs) are undertaken by the Department of Social Protection in accordance with the relevant guidelines published by the Department of the Taoiseach relating to significant legislative, policy and other changes.
A Regulatory Impact Analysis is not ordinarily undertaken on the package of tax, welfare and other measures announced in the annual Budget Day Statements. As most of the Social Welfare Bills which have been published since March 2011 have provided for the implementation of various budgetary measures, RIAs have not been considered necessary in relation to these measures. Social Welfare Bills also provide for a range of other miscellaneous and technical amendments to the social welfare code and these types of amendment are not considered amenable to the undertaking of an RIA.
Where significant non-budgetary changes have been provided for in the Bills which I have published, Regulatory Impact Analyses have been undertaken. Two such RIAs have been published since March 2011. One of these RIAs relates to amendments to the funding standard applying to defined benefit pension schemes, which were provided for in Part 3 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2012. This RIA is available at http://www.welfare.ie/en/downloads/riapension.pdf.
The other RIA relates to the measures to provide for the transposition of certain aspects of Directive 2010/41/EU on the principle of equal treatment between men and women engaged in an activity in a self-employed capacity, in so far as they relate to ensuring that the spouse or civil partner of a self-employed worker can benefit from social protection in accordance with national law. The amendments necessary to transpose these provisions are contained in section 19 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2014 (as passed by Dáil Éireann). This RIA is available at http://www.welfare.ie/en/downloads/RIADirective2010-41-EU.pdf.
In addition, Part 4 of the Social Welfare and Pension (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013 implemented the recommendations of the Critical Review of the Pension Board. This review, which involved a public consultation process, was carried out under the Public Service Reform plan. This review is available at http://www.welfare.ie/en/pressoffice/pdf/Report-of-the-Critical-Review-23-April-2013.pdf.
Part 3 of the Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Act 2013 provided for changes in the manner in which the resources of a defined benefit pension scheme are distributed on the wind up of a pension scheme. On the publication of this Bill, the Department of Social Protection also published a report by Mercer on the changes to occupational pensions. This report undertook a detailed modelling exercise of different approaches to the changes to the order of priority given to the disbursement of assets when a defined benefit pension scheme winds up. This is available at http://www.welfare.ie/en/downloads/Mercer-Review-of-Pension-Scheme-Wind-Up-Priority.pdf.
The Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2012 provided for an extension of the list of bodies authorised to solemnise marriages. As these changes were of a minor nature, an RIA was not considered necessary in the case of this Act.
Bills Initiated by Minister for Social Protection since March 2011
|
Title of Bill |
Status |
RIA Undertaken |
|
Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2011 |
Enacted 29th June 2011 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Social Welfare Act 2011 |
Enacted 19th December 2011 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2012 |
Enacted 1st May 2012 |
RIA undertaken on Part 3 of Act |
|
Social Welfare Act 2012 |
Enacted 21st December 2012 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2012 |
Enacted 26th December 2012 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013 |
Enacted 28th June 2013 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2013 |
Enacted 9th November 2013 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Bill 2013 |
Enacted 25th December 2013 |
Not considered necessary |
|
Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2014 |
Published on 28th May 2014 and currently before the Oireachtas |
RIA undertaken on section 19 of Bill |
388. Deputy Dara Murphy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection when a decision will be made on an appeal for one parent family payment in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29316/14]
View answerMy Department is responsible for implementing the Liability to Maintain Family Provisions provided for in Part 12 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, as amended. The methods of assessment of the liable relative’s ability to pay are specified in detail in Regulations (S.I. 571 of 2006 and S.I. 142 of 2007).
The person concerned was assessed with a maintenance liability and issued a maintenance contribution assessment in August 2013 in respect of his child. He appealed the decision of the amount assessed in March 2014.
As the Department continues to find that the person concerned is financially capable of discharging his full liability to the Department, a submission outlining the facts of the appeal has issued to the Social Welfare Appeals Office for their consideration and the Appeals Office will be in contact shortly.
389. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if her Department or agencies under its auspices has engaged the services of a debt collection agency in pursuing money owed to her Department or its agencies; if her Department have guidelines regarding hiring such agencies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29336/14]
View answerThe Department of Social Protection currently does not engage the services of debt collection agencies.
Questions Nos. 390 to 392, inclusive, withdrawn.
393. Deputy Heather Humphreys asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the reason a decision has not yet issued on a carer's allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Monaghan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29389/14]
View answerI am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, has decided to allow the appeal of the person concerned by way of a summary decision. The person concerned has been notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision.
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.
394. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will clarify whether a married couple regarding a married couple, one of whom is in receipt of a jobseeker's payment, if the temporary income from providing accommodation in their home for students over the summer period will affect their social welfare entitlement; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29422/14]
View answerThere are two types of jobseeker payments, jobseeker’s benefit and jobseeker’s allowance.
Entitlement to jobseeker’s benefit is based on PRSI contributions paid by the customer. Jobseeker’s benefit rates are made up of a personal rate and increases for a qualified adult, and qualified children. The personal rate and children’s rate are not subject to a means test. The income of a qualified adult is however taken into account to determine if an adult dependant allowance is payable.
Jobseeker’s allowance is a means tested payment. All income is taken into account in determining the means of a customer and qualified adult. Where a customer is providing accommodation in their home for students over the summer period any income derived, less associated expenses, will be taken into consideration when determining means.
The couple in question should contact their local social welfare/Intreo office for further information in this regard.
Question No. 395 answered with Question No. 359.
396. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will initiate a review of the eligibility criteria for participation in community employment schemes; and if she will ensure that as part of that review the demographic context in which the scheme operates will be taken into account, as many community groups feel that the CE scheme does not currently meet the needs of rural communities as the population structure is not conducive to meeting the eligibility rules on an on-going basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29487/14]
View answerI can confirm that the Community Employment (CE) participant eligibility criteria and other aspects of the programme are kept under on-going review.
CE is only one of a suite of employment programmes that can be undertaken by local sponsoring groups or implementing bodies. Other programmes available include the Rural Social Scheme, Tús, Gateway, the Community Services Programme and JobBridge. The range of employment programmes thus takes a range of variables into account, including the demographics of persons currently unemployed in a variety of circumstances.
CE is a temporary, fixed-term employment and training programme designed to assist long-term unemployed people, and other disadvantaged groups, to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to work routine. It is a medium to short-term activation intervention and was never intended to replace or displace permanent employment in a locality.
Question No. 397 withdrawn.
398. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the highest weekly payment from all payments from her Department to any one family and person; the highest annual monetary value from all payments from her Department in 2013 that was received by any one family and person; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29494/14]
View answerIt is not possible to extract the data requested in respect of the actual weekly amount paid to persons with unique PPS numbers or the highest annual monetary amount paid to an individual PPS number by my Department in 2013 under one or more different payment headings. This is because the Department delivers a wide range of payments at weekly, monthly, annual and other intervals across a range of claim processing systems which support the delivery of entitlements to people under individual social welfare schemes.
While the average payment varies across the various schemes operated by the Department, the most typical rate paid to people of working age is €188 per week, while the most typical rate paid to people aged 66 years or more is €230.30 per week. Additional allowances for dependent adults and children are also payable in most schemes.
In addition to their primary weekly payment, some people may also receive secondary benefits, such as Rent Supplement or Fuel Allowance if they also satisfy the conditions for receipt of those payments. The most typical rate of Rent Supplement is €100 per week, while Fuel Allowance is €20 per week from October to April.
The following table sets out the average weekly value of the most common social welfare payments paid in 2013.
Average values for weekly social welfare payments, Annual Averages - Provisional Outturn 2013
|
Scheme |
Average value (€weekly) |
|
State Pension (Contributory) |
241.37 |
|
State Pension (Transition) |
232.24 |
|
Widow(er)s Contributory Pension |
227.54 |
|
Invalidity Pension |
237.41 |
|
One Parent Family Payment |
221.62 |
|
State Pension (Non-Contributory) |
211.46 |
|
Illness Benefit |
205.44 |
|
Jobseeker’s Allowance |
200.24 |
|
Disability Allowance |
203.92 |
|
Carer’s Allowance |
189.67 |
|
Jobseeker’s Benefit |
175.59 |
Note: The values presented above are scheme specific and do not take into account the fact that some individual recipients may be in receipt of more than one personal rate of a primary payment e.g. State Pension Contributory and a Half-Rate Carer’s Allowance (over 40% of all Carer’s Allowance recipients receive more than one primary personal payment per week). The weekly averages include arrears and increases/allowances other than fuel allowance.
Questions Nos. 399 to 401, inclusive, withdrawn.
402. Deputy Frank Feighan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will provide an update on an appeal lodged in respect of entitlement to domiciliary care allowance in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Leitrim. [29539/14]
View answerAn application for domiciliary care allowance was received on the 17th February 2014. The application was not allowed as it was considered that the child did not meet the eligibility criteria for the allowance. A decision letter issued to the customer on the 1st May 2014 advising of this decision.
In the case of an application which is refused on medical grounds the applicant may submit additional information and/or ask for the decision to be reviewed or they may appeal the decision directly to the Social Welfare Appeals Office within 21 days. To date there has been no request for a review and no record of an appeal having been registered in this case.
Question No. 403 answered with Question No. 356.
