Written Replies Nos. 63 to 69
63. Deputy John O'Mahony asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection when a decision will be made on an application by a person (details supplied) in County Mayo for domiciliary care allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33600/15]
View answerApplications for domiciliary care allowance (DCA) in respect of 2 children were received from the person concerned on the 12th August 2015. The applications have been forwarded to the Department’s Medical Assessors for their medical opinion. Following receipt of a medical opinion on the applications, a decision will be made on each case by a Deciding Officer and notified to the person concerned. It can currently take 12 weeks to process an application for DCA.
64. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the way in which the procedures for examination of applications for social welfare payments can be standardised and streamlined to eliminate any possible delays; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33626/15]
View answerOne of the main priorities for the Department is to build on achievements already made to integrate services into a new service delivery model and streamline the applications process for all schemes.
Staff in the Department administer over 70 different schemes and services with over 1.44 million people benefitting from weekly payments in respect of almost 2.3 million beneficiaries. This is on top of 607,000 families in receipt of a monthly child benefit payment. This means that our payments and services impact on the lives of almost everybody in the State in one way or another.
The Department is committed to ensuring that claims are processed as expeditiously as possible. I acknowledge that processing times vary across schemes, depending on the differing qualification criteria. Schemes that require a high level of documentary evidence from the customer, particularly in the case of illness-related schemes, can take longer to process. Similarly, means-tested payments can also require more detailed investigation and interaction with the applicant, thereby lengthening the decision making process.
As part of the Department’s service delivery modernisation programme, a range of initiatives aimed at streamlining the processing of claims, supported by modern technology, have been implemented in recent years. Operational processes, procedures and the organisation of work are continually reviewed to ensure that processing capability is maximised.
The new Intreo service integrates employment services and the traditional income support model, providing for a streamlined and personalised service to Jobseekers. Intreo centres have also introduced an integrated decision-making team to further streamline the processes formerly undertaken by former Local Office staff, Social Welfare Inspectors and the Community Welfare Service.
I wish to assure the Deputy that prompt processing of claims remains a priority for the Department. Each scheme area is continuously monitored and processing procedures reviewed to ensure that claims are paid to customers as quickly as possible.
65. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the way in which the reduction in the live register can contribute to expediting the process for various social welfare payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33627/15]
View answerThe Department is committed to ensuring that claims are processed as expeditiously as possible and that backlogs in claims are kept to a minimum. Each scheme area is continuously monitored and reviewed to ensure customers are responded to as quickly as possible. Processing times vary by scheme. This principally reflects the fact that the legal eligibility conditions - such as means tests, family circumstances and medical status - are more complex for some schemes than for others. The reduction in the live register assists the Department’s capacity to process claims but it should be noted that the churn of people coming on and off the register is substantial and requires administrative intervention. For example, the decrease of 4,552 people on the live register at the end of August 2015 was made up of 22,491 people who came onto the register and 27,043 who left.
The staffing needs of the Department are regularly reviewed, having regard to workloads and the competing demands arising, to ensure that the best use is made of all available resources.
66. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of persons in receipt of jobseeker's allowance and-or jobseeker's benefit at 31 December in each year from 2008 to 2015 to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33628/15]
View answer68. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of persons in receipt of a contributory State pension and a non-contributory State pension at the end of each year from 2008 to 2014; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33630/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 66 and 68 together.
The information requested by the Deputy is collated by the Department annually for inclusion in the Statistical Information on Social Welfare Services report which is laid before the Dáil when published and copies lodged in the Oireachtas library. Furthermore, these reports are available to the public at http://www.welfare.ie/en/Pages/Annual-SWS-Statistical-Information-Report-2014.aspx.
67. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the facilities in her Department to examine all aspects of applications for contributory State pension, where the applicant refers to information relating to employment not included in the calculations which determined entitlement to a full pension or part thereof; if she is satisfied that adequate provision is being made to examine all aspects of other employments which, while not recorded, may have carried an entitlement to a contributory State pension at a later date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33629/15]
View answerIn assessing a State pension (contributory) application, a Deciding Officer will carefully note the applicant’s employment history details and will check against all available records and information sources within the Department to ensure that the pension is correctly assessed and the highest possible rate of state pension contributory is awarded.
Where an applicant indicates that they have been insurably employed in Ireland and abroad, the Department liaises with the relevant Pension Authority of the other EU Member State(s), or country(ies) with which Ireland has a Bilateral Social Security Agreement, to ensure that the applicant’s state pension entitlements in those countries and Ireland are fully considered.
Applicants for state pension contributory are asked to provide as much employment history detail as possible to allow the Deciding Officer to corroborate their insurance record as fully as possible. The Deciding Officer’s decision letter includes details of the record relied upon when making their decision, and the claimant is asked to check it for accuracy and completeness. It is open to the claimant to notify the Deciding Officer where gaps or omissions relating to periods of insurable employment are found and to provide details of the any missing employment history so that the Department may examine the matter. Where sufficient evidence or information is furnished, an Inspector of the Department is asked to investigate the matter fully. In some cases, the Inspector’s findings may result in a claimant’s insurance record being updated and their pension entitlement reviewed by a Deciding Officer.
69. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection how her Department monitors rent supplement to ensure that everything possible is done to maximise the impact on the housing situation and homelessness; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33631/15]
View answerRent supplement plays a vital role in housing families and individuals, with the scheme currently supporting approximately 65,000 people at a cost of over €298 million in 2015, with over 13,700 tenancies awarded this year.
A review of the rent limits undertaken earlier this year found that the impact of increasing limits at a time of constrained supply will increase costs disproportionately for the Exchequer with little or no new housing available to recipients.
Rather than increasing limits at this time rent supplement policy will continue to allow for flexibility where landlords seek rents in excess of current limits. Flexibility is provided under the National Framework for Tenancy Sustainment for both existing customers of the scheme and new applicants. Under this measure tenant’s circumstances are considered on a case-by-case basis, and rents are being increased above prescribed limits as appropriate. This flexible approach has already assisted approximately 4,000 households throughout the country to retain their rented accommodation. In addition, the Department, in conjunction with Threshold, operates a special Protocol in the Dublin and Cork areas where supply issues are particularly acute, with plans to extend this arrangement to Galway City.
The Department, including through its Homeless Persons Unit and Asylum Seekers & New Communities Unit in Dublin, works closely with local authorities, Government agencies and the voluntary sector in assisting homeless persons to access private rented accommodation. This ensures that, where possible, people are diverted away from homeless services and towards community-based supports. Department officials are actively engaged at a local level with the Homeless Action Teams (HATs) and Non-Government Organisations working in the area of homelessness.
I can assure the Deputy that where Departmental staff are notified of a threat of tenancy loss these measures are implemented as appropriate. Persons in receipt of rent supplement at risk of losing their tenancy are advised to contact the Department’s Community Welfare Service or Threshold’s Tenancy Protection Service without delay.
