Written Answers Nos. 196-217
196. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the position regarding applications for social welfare allowances by persons (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36484/15]
View answerInvalidity pension (IP) is a payment for people who are permanently incapable of work because of illness or incapacity and who satisfy the pay related social insurance (PRSI) contribution conditions.
The department received a claim for IP for the person concerned on the 16 September 2015. The claim will be processed as quickly as possible and the person in question will be notified directly of the outcome.
Disability Allowance (DA) is a weekly allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged over 16 and under 66. The disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to a medical assessment, a means test and a habitual residency test.
The department received a claim for DA for the person concerned on 2 October 2015. On completion of the necessary investigations on all aspects of the claim a decision will be made and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
The person in question is currently in receipt of Carer’s Allowance and his wife is in receipt of IP in her own right. No application for supplementary welfare allowance has been received.
197. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will confirm receipt of correspondence (details supplied) by her Department; that the relevant records have been updated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36500/15]
View answerThe continuing eligibility for disability allowance (DA) of the person concerned is currently under review. The Department has received notification of a new address from the person concerned. A local Social Welfare Inspector (SWI) has been requested to investigate all the circumstances of the case and has met the person concerned. The SWI is to provide the deciding officer with a report on the person’s overall circumstances. Following receipt of that report a decision will be made on the ongoing eligibility to DA of the person concerned and he will be notified directly of the outcome.
198. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the status of an application for a carer's allowance by a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36501/15]
View answerI confirm that the Department received an application for carer’s allowance from the person concerned on 28 July 2015.
The application was referred to a social welfare inspector (SWI) on 31 August 2015 to assess the level of care being provided, assess means and confirm that all the conditions for receipt of carer’s allowance are satisfied.
Once the SWI has reported, a deciding officer will make a decision without delay. The person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
199. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection why a decision has not been made on an application for a review of a carer's allowance for a person (details supplied) in County Mayo; when a decision will be made; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36513/15]
View answerI confirm that the department received an application for Carer's Allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 29 May 2015.
It is a condition for receipt of a CA that the carer must be providing full-time care and attention. It is a further condition that the person being cared for must require full-time care and attention.
The evidence submitted in support of this application was examined and a deciding officer (DO) decided that the person in question was not entitled to CA on the grounds that neither of these conditions were satisfied.
The person concerned was notified on 3 September 2015 of this decision, the reasons for it and of her right of review and appeal.
The person concerned has requested a review and submitted additional evidence in support of her application. To clarify the matter, it has been referred to a local social welfare inspector (SWI) to assess the level of care being provided and confirm that all the conditions for receipt of carer’s allowance are satisfied.
Once the SWI has reported, a DO will review the decision without delay and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome of the review.
In the meantime, the person concerned is in receipt of a weekly supplementary welfare allowance from her local community welfare service.
200. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if her Department will fund training for persons on long-term unemployment benefit to facilitate their becoming qualified bus or train drivers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36516/15]
View answerThe Training Support Grant (TSG) is designed to fund quick access to short-term training where this cannot be provided by a State provider within a reasonable time or where a intervention is identified that can support individual jobseekers to access work opportunities. Access to the scheme is via the Department’s case officers who are tasked with identifying support interventions for jobseekers, particularly where a job opportunity has been identified or where an intervention will enable an application for work to be made. The scheme is activation focused and the jobseeker is required to provide reasonable evidence or grounds of need (for example in the form of a potential job offer) or a requirement to maintain or achieve accreditation. The Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) for professional bus and truck drivers is eligible for support under TSG. Support for train driving instruction is not supported under any of the Department’s schemes.
201. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) in County Cork is only in receipt of part of a carer's allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36523/15]
View answerCarer's Allowance (CA) is a payment made to people who satisfy means and habitual residency conditions and are providing full-time care and attention to a person or persons who requires such care.
In general, a person may not receive more than one weekly social welfare payment at the same time. However, when a person has an entitlement to CA and is also entitled to another weekly social welfare payment, they can keep their main social welfare payment and get a half-rate CA as well.
The person concerned is in receipt of an invalidity pension from 8 November 2012 and is providing full-time care and attention to another person and so also receives CA at half-rate.
202. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of persons who will benefit from the tapering of pay-related social insurance introduced in the budget; the average benefit they will receive; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36608/15]
View answerI am introducing the tapered PRSI Credit as part of Budget 2016, to address a significant issue with the manner in which charging PRSI impacts those on lower weekly earnings.
Currently Class A employees become liable to pay PRSI on all earnings, once weekly earnings exceed €352.01 This creates a “step effect” as net income reduces immediately by the full 4% PRSI charge applied to all earnings. This means that a €0.01 increase in weekly earnings of €352 attracts a weekly PRSI charge of €14.08.
The introduction of the PRSI Credit will address the “step effect” by reducing the actual amount of PRSI charged, for those earning between €352.01 and €424 in a week. At weekly earnings of €352.01 the maximum PRSI Credit of €12 will reduce the PRSI charge payable from €14.08 to €2.08.
As gross earnings increase, the PRSI Credit is withdrawn on a tapered basis. This ensures that the amount of PRSI actually charged will increase in a progressive manner as gross earnings increase. At gross weekly earnings of €424, the tapering of the Credit has exhausted and the PRSI charge at 4% applies.
It is estimated that the introduction of the PRSI Credit will benefit 88,369 employments. The benefit for individual employees depends on the level of their weekly earnings. The following table details the numbers of employments and the extent of their weekly gains, at different income bands.
|
Weekly Income band |
Number of Employments |
Range of Weekly Gains |
|
352-<355 |
3,863 |
€11.50 - €12.00 |
|
355-<360 |
8,004 |
€10.67 - €11.50 |
|
360-<365 |
6,021 |
€9.84 - €10.67 |
|
365-<370 |
5,664 |
€9.00 - €9.84 |
|
370-<375 |
6,098 |
€8.17 - €9.00 |
|
375-<380 |
5,955 |
€7.34 - €8.17 |
|
380-<385 |
5,716 |
€6.50 - €7.34 |
|
385-<390 |
6,103 |
€5.67 - €6.50 |
|
390-<395 |
6,779 |
€4.84 - €5.67 |
|
395-<400 |
5,497 |
€4.00 - €4.84 |
|
400-<405 |
7,176 |
€3.17 - €4.00 |
|
405-<410 |
9,486 |
€2.34 - €3.17 |
|
410-<415 |
4,133 |
€1.50 - €2.34 |
|
415-<420 |
4,515 |
€0.67 - €1.50 |
|
420-<424 |
3,359 |
0.00 - €0.67 |
203. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the legislative basis for the public services card; and if there is a legal obligation to be issued one. [36639/15]
View answerThe Department has developed, in conjunction with a number of other Government Departments, a rules based standard for establishing and authenticating an individual’s identity for the purposes of access to public services. This programme of work, which is known as the Standard Authentication Framework Environment or SAFE for short, also provides for the introduction of a Public Services Card (PSC) to enable individuals to gain access to public services more efficiently and with a minimum of duplication of effort, while at the same time preserving their privacy to the maximum extent possible. A PSC is issued following the SAFE registration of an individual involving verification of their identity including capture of a photograph and signature. The PSC is designed to replace other cards in the public sector such as the free travel pass and the social services card of the Department and to make it easy for providers of public services to verify the identity of customers.
Sections 263 and 263(A) of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 (as amended) provide the legislative basis for the issue, use, cancellation and surrender of the PSC.
There is no generic mandatory requirement for a citizen to carry a PSC or to produce one on demand. However, the State has elected that certain publicly provided services may only be made available to people in possession of a PSC. This improves the efficiency of the delivery of these services, makes them easier to access, significantly reduces the incidence of fraud and error and considerably reduces the potential for forgery.
All new applicants for a PPS Number as well as all new and existing social welfare claimants are statutorily obliged to satisfy the Department as to their identity. In practical terms, this entails going through the SAFE registration process. Sections 262, 263 (B), 241 and 247(C) of Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 are relevant in this regard.
204. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the status of a claim by a person (details supplied) in County Mayo; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36647/15]
View answerI confirm that the person concerned has made an application to have their disability allowance (DA) payment increased in respect of two dependent children.
This application has been awarded and back-dated to 5 June 2013. The next payment, due to the person in question on 21 October 2015, will include this increase. Arrears of increase for qualified children have recently issued by cheque to the person in question and he may expect to receive them within the next few days.
205. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the financial assistance available to a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36649/15]
View answerA number of client categories are specifically excluded in legislation from receiving assistance under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme. These include people in full-time employment and people in full-time education. A trainee Garda is therefore not eligible to apply for assistance under this scheme.
206. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the full-year cost in 2016 of increasing the qualified child increase by €5; by €10. [35950/15]
View answerThe estimated cost in 2016 and in a full year of increasing the qualified child increase by €5 and by €10 is €93.7 million and €187.3 million, respectively. This includes the costs related to the Back to Work Family Dividend.
On Budget Day yesterday, I announced a social welfare Budget package for 2016 with four key aims:
- To increase supports for pensioners aged 66 and over.
- To strengthen supports for families with children.
- To increase the momentum to date in helping jobseekers back to work.
- To provide targeted assistance for vulnerable groups.
In regard to families with children, I am pleased to be in the position to improve supports for families with children. These measures included:
- A €5 increase in Child Benefit, which increases the rate from €135 to €140 per month per child. This will benefit over 623,000 families in respect of almost 1.2 million children.
- Increased funding for the School Meals programme of €3 million, bringing the provision to €42 million in 2016.
- The introduction of a new Paternity Benefit scheme whereby fathers will, for the first time, have the option of applying for 2 weeks’ leave in respect of births from September 2016. This measure recognises the important role of fathers in bringing up their children.
- An additional €18 million to increase the Family Income Supplement (FIS) thresholds - by €5 for a family with one child and by €10 for a family with two children or more. The measure will benefit nearly 60,000 families and over 131,000 children.
207. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) in County Kildare is not in receipt of a fuel allowance, given that the person qualifies under the guidelines as outlined in her Department's information leaflet; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35955/15]
View answerThe National Fuel Scheme (fuel allowance) applies to persons in receipt of long term Social Welfare payments. The allowance is subject to a means test and is paid only to those who live alone or with certain exempted people. Full details of the qualifying criteria for the scheme are available on the Department’s website www.welfare.ie.
The person concerned applied for fuel allowance when applying for invalidity pension on the 16 September 2014. Her application for fuel allowance was disallowed as the weekly household means at that time were assessed as being in excess of the allowable weekly income limit.
It is open to the person concerned to re-apply for the allowance for the 2015/16 season. A claim form has been sent to the person in question and, should she wish to reapply, she should complete and return the form. Upon receipt of a completed application, her claim will be processed without delay and she will be notified directly of the outcome.
208. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will ensure arrears of a disability allowance will issue without delay to a person (details supplied) in County Westmeath. [35964/15]
View answerDisability allowance arrears have recently issued to the person in question and he may expect to receive them within the next few days.
209. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the status of an appeal by a person (details supplied) in County Kildare under the domiciliary care scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35970/15]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 22nd July 2015. 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 have been received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 12th October 2015 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.
210. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny will be approved for a place on the community employment scheme for Paulstown-Goresbridge-Gowran. [35979/15]
View answerThe Department’s records indicate that while the person concerned has already been a participant on a Community Employment scheme, he is eligible to apply for another position.
211. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will review the decision taken on an application for a disability allowance by a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; if the person's means, which come from a spouse's income, will be examined on the basis of the person's debts, the hardship being experienced by the family, the person having had a stroke, being in very poor health, and not being able to work again; and if her Department will advise the family as to the supports they may be entitled to. [35973/15]
View answerI confirm the person in question is in receipt of reduced rate of disability allowance due to income from his spouse’s employment. The means assessment applied by the deciding officer is set down in legislation and therefore the deciding officer cannot deviate from the process. There are disregards applied to the income to allow for expenses. If there has been a change to the circumstances of the person concerned, he may forward any relevant documentation that he deems relevant and the case will be reviewed.
The person concerned is advised to contact their local citizens information centre who will advise them if there are any other forms of assistance appropriate to their specific circumstances.
212. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the full-year cost in 2016 of increasing the jobseeker's allowance for those aged from 18 to 24 years, by €10; €20; and €30 per week. [35988/15]
View answer213. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost in 2016 of increasing the jobseeker's allowance for those under 26 years of age by €10; €20; and €30 per week. [35989/15]
View answer214. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of increasing the disability allowance; the blind pension; the invalidity pension; and the carer's allowance, by €20; €25; and €30 per week. [36010/15]
View answerI propose to take Question Nos. 212 to 214, inclusive, together.
The estimated full year cost in 2016 of increasing the €100 and €144 rates of jobseeker's allowance for those aged 18 to 24 years of age by €10.00, €20.00 and €30.00 is detailed in the following table.
|
Weekly Increase |
18 to 24 year olds (on €144 per week rate only) Cost €m |
18 to 24 year olds (on €100 per week rate only) Cost €m |
|
€10.00 |
0.8 |
15.40 |
|
€20.00 |
1.7 |
30.70 |
|
€30.00 |
2.5 |
46.10 |
The estimated full-year cost in 2016 of increasing the weekly jobseeker's allowance rate for all those under 26 years of age by €10.00, €20.00 and €30.00 is €18.20 million, €36.40 million and €54.70 million respectively.
This costing includes the cost of increasing the rates payable to all recipients of jobseeker’s allowance aged under 26 including those who are in receipt of the €188 per week maximum rate of payment such as recipients with qualified children.
The estimated full year cost of increasing each of the following payments by €20.00, €25.00 and €30.00 weekly; Disability Allowance; Blind Pension; Invalidity Pension and Carer's Allowance, is detailed in the following table.
|
Weekly Increase |
Disability Allowance €m |
Blind Pension €m |
Invalidity Pension €m |
Carer's Allowance €m |
Total €m |
|
€20.00 |
131.2 |
1.5 |
63.5 |
44.2 |
240.4 |
|
€25.00 |
163.0 |
1.8 |
79.4 |
55.3 |
299.5 |
|
€30.00 |
196.7 |
2.2 |
95.2 |
66.3 |
360.4 |
On Budget Day, I announced a social welfare Budget package for 2016 with four key aims:
- To increase supports for pensioners aged 66 and over;
- To strengthen supports for families with children;
- To increase the momentum to date in helping jobseekers back to work; and
- To provide targeted assistance for vulnerable groups.
In this regard, I am pleased to be in the position to provide a 75% Christmas Bonus payment this year. A single young unemployed jobseeker in receipt of €100 rate of Jobseeker’s Allowance for 15 months will receive a Christmas bonus payment of €75, while a person in receipt of the €144 for 15 months will receive €108. A single person in receipt of Disability Allowance will receive a bonus payment of €141. A couple in receipt of the Blind Pension, with a qualified adult and no children will receive a bonus of €234.60. A couple in receipt of Invalidity Pension with a qualified adult and two qualified children will receive a bonus payment of €293.40.
It should be noted that carers aged 66 and over will benefit from the €3 weekly rate increase. This rate increase will also benefit carers in receipt of the half-rate Carer’s Allowance aged 66 and over, who will gain by €1.50 per week.
The Respite Care Grant, to be renamed the Carer’s Support Grant to better reflect the usage of the grant, will also be increased by €325, from €1,375 to €1,700 per annum. Furthermore, payment of Carer’s Allowance will be extended by 6 weeks, from 6 weeks to 12 weeks, after the death of the care recipient.
In addition, those eligible for the Fuel Allowance will gain from the increase in January of €2.50 per week, from €20 to €22.50 per week over the fuel season.
215. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the estimated cost in 2016 of increasing the income disregard of €350 for those in receipt of disability allowance by €10; €16; and €20 per week. [36011/15]
View answer216. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the estimated cost in 2016 of increasing the income disregard of €350 for those in receipt of the Blind Pension by €10; €16; and €20, per week. [36012/15]
View answer217. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the estimated full-year cost of abolishing the means test for the carer’s allowance. [36014/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 215 to 217, inclusive, together.
Given the demand-led nature of the three schemes in question, such changes in the qualifying conditions would have an unquantifiable impact on the numbers of people claiming, and as a result, it is not possible to estimate the costs involved.
