Written Answers Nos. 342-360
342. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a payment to a person (details supplied) under the jobseeker's allowance scheme was stopped in January and May 2016; the documentation, if any, that remains outstanding in respect of the current application; when the person can expect to receive correspondence from his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23826/16]
View answerThe person in question was refused jobseeker's allowance and had his basic weekly supplementary welfare allowance payment terminated on the basis that he failed to provide the Department with the information required to determine his entitlement. An appeal hearing is currently in the process of being scheduled after an earlier appeal date was cancelled at the request of the person in question.
I hope that this clarified the matter for the Deputy.
343. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection the way in which a person who is in a house-sharing situation can avail of the fuel allowance as at present they are not eligible to claim under the current guidelines. [23831/16]
View answerThe fuel allowance is a payment of €22.50 per week for 26 weeks from October to April, to 391,000 low income households, at an estimated cost of €224 million in 2016. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. The allowance represents a contribution towards the energy costs of a household and is not intended to meet those costs in full. Only one allowance is paid per household. My Department also pays an electricity or gas allowance as part of the household benefits package to approximately 419,000 customers, at an estimated cost of €228 million in 2016.
For a person on a qualifying payment, the household composition that may allow them to receive fuel allowance would be either they live alone, or only with:
i. a qualified spouse/civil partner/cohabitant or qualified child(ren);
ii. a person in receipt of a qualifying payment who would be entitled to the allowance in their own right.
iii. a person who is receipt of carer’s allowance or carer’s benefit in respect of providing full-time care and attention to the fuel allowance applicant or their qualified spouse/civil partner/cohabitant or qualified child(ren).
iv. a person receiving short-term jobseeker's allowance or basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance (i.e., less than 391 days).
People who are in receipt of a qualifying contributory payment must also satisfy a means test. Fuel allowance is not paid if a person’s heating needs are provided for in full as part of their accommodation.
Any decision to change the qualifying conditions for fuel allowance would have to be considered in the context of overall budgetary negotiations.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
344. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection to expedite an application for carer's allowance for a person (details supplied). [23833/16]
View answerI confirm that my department received an application for carer’s allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 15 April 2016. Unfortunately, there are currently delays in the processing of new applications. Additional resources have been provided to the CA section in order to improve the waiting times for new applications and they are working hard to make this happen.
Frequently, delays are outside the control of the Department and are caused by the customer failing to fully complete the claim form or failing to attach the supporting documentation that is requested on the application form.
This application will be processed as quickly as possible and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome. In the meantime, the person concerned is in receipt of a supplementary welfare allowance from her local community welfare service.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy
345. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection to expedite an application for carer's and domiciliary care allowances for a person (details supplied). [23834/16]
View answerI confirm that my department received an application for carer’s allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 25 April 2016.
It is a condition for receipt of CA, that where the care recipient is aged less than 16 years of age, domiciliary care allowance (DCA) must be in payment in respect of that care recipient.
An application for DCA was received from the person concerned on the 28th April 2016. This application has been forwarded to one of the Department’s medical assessors for their medical opinion. Following receipt of this opinion, a decision will be made by a deciding officer and notified to the person concerned. Applications are processed in date of receipt order. It can currently take 13 weeks to process an application for DCA.
If DCA is awarded, the CA application will be processed as quickly as possible and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome. In the meantime, the person concerned is in receipt of a weekly social welfare support.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
346. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection to expedite an application for carer's allowance for a person (details supplied). [23837/16]
View answerAn application for carer's allowance (CA) was received from the person concerned on 13 November 2015.
It is a condition for receipt of a CA that the person being cared for must have a disability whose effect is that they require full-time care and attention.
This is defined as requiring from another person, continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout the day in connection with normal bodily functions or continuous supervision in order to avoid danger to him or herself and likely to require that level of care for at least twelve months.
The evidence submitted in support of this application was examined and the deciding officer decided that this evidence did not indicate that the requirement for full-time care was satisfied.
The person concerned was notified on 1 June 2016 of this decision, the reason for it and of his right of review and appeal. The person concerned has requested a review of this decision and submitted additional evidence in support of his application. The review is currently being processed and once completed, the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
347. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection to expedite an application for carer's allowance for a person (details supplied). [23838/16]
View answerAn application for carer's allowance (CA) was received from the person concerned on 17 February 2016.
CA is a means-tested social assistance payment, made to persons who are providing full-time care and attention to a person who has a disability such that they require that level of care.
A person can be considered to be providing full-time care and attention where they are engaged in employment, self-employment or on training courses outside the home for a maximum of 15 hours per week, provided that they can show to the satisfaction of a deciding officer that adequate care has been provided for the care recipient in their absence.
Having examined all the available evidence, a deciding officer has decided that this condition is not satisfied in this case.
The person concerned was notified on 5 July 2016 of this decision, the reason for it and of his right of review and appeal.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
348. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will consider changes to the child benefit payment system to allow children over 18 who are still attending secondary school to continue to receive child benefit until they finish school; the financial cost of such a change; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23895/16]
View answerChild Benefit is currently paid to around 624,000 families in respect of some 1.2 million children, with an estimated expenditure in the order of over €2 billion in 2016. Child Benefit is an important source of income for all families and in Budget 2016 the Government increased Child Benefit by €5 per month, at a cost of €72 million.
Budget 2009 reduced the age for eligibility for Child Benefit from 19 years to less than 18 years.
The cost of extending child benefit to 18 year olds in second level education is estimated at €62.5 million. As child benefit is a universal payment, this proposal would not be targeted. Families on low incomes can avail of a number of provisions to social welfare schemes that support children in full-time education until the age of 22, including:
- qualified child increases (IQCs) with primary social welfare payments;
- family income supplement (FIS) for low-paid employees with children;
- the back to school clothing and footwear allowance for low income families (paid at the full-time second level education rate).
These schemes provide targeted assistance that is directly linked with household income and thereby supports low-income families with older children participating in full-time education.
Extending Child Benefit to students who are in full-time secondary education and who have reached 18 years of age would have to be considered in an overall budgetary context.
349. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will give further consideration to an extension of the one-year duration of Tús work programmes given the experience of both participants and co-ordinators, who believe a longer period would be of benefit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23896/16]
View answerTús provides short-term work opportunities for those who are unemployed for more than a year. It is designed to break the cycle of unemployment and maintain work readiness, thereby improving a person’s chances of returning to the labour market. Currently, there are no circumstances under which a person’s term on Tús can be extended.
The Tús budget for 2016 allows for 8,000 participants. Extending the period of participation beyond one year for current participants would reduce the overall number of placements available to other people who are long-term unemployed. The existing 12-month placement period for participants on Tús is adequate to meet the objectives of the initiative whilst also ensuring that as many unemployed people as possible are able to benefit from it.
Tús was introduced as a direct response to the growth in the level of unemployment during the financial crisis. With the ongoing welcome reductions in the live register, a review of work schemes, including Tús, is necessary. This will ensure that the number and nature of schemes, as well as the conditions governing participation on these schemes, continues to be appropriate. I will be considering all of these issues over the coming months.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
350. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will expedite an application for payment of a carer's allowance for a person (details supplied). [23964/16]
View answerThe application by the person concerned for carer’s allowance (CA) was awarded to her on 13 July 2016 and the first payment will issue to her nominated bank account on 21 July 2016.
Arrears of allowance due from 4 February 2016 to 20 July 2016 will issue shortly.
The person concerned was notified on 13 July 2016 of this decision, the reason for it and of her right of review and appeal.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
351. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of an application for a disability allowance for a person (details supplied). [23965/16]
View answerI confirm that the department is in receipt of an application for disability allowance (DA) from the above named person on 17 June 2016. On completion of the necessary investigations on all aspects of the application a decision will be made and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
The processing time for individual DA applications may vary in accordance with their relative complexity in terms of the three main qualifying criteria, the person’s circumstances and the information they provide in support of their claim.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
352. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of an application for a disability allowance of a person (details supplied). [23966/16]
View answerI confirm that the department is in receipt of an application for disability allowance (DA) from the above named person on 19 May 2016. On completion of the necessary investigations on all aspects of the application a decision will be made and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
The processing time for individual DA applications may vary in accordance with their relative complexity in terms of the three main qualifying criteria, the person’s circumstances and the information they provide in support of their claim.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
353. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of an application for a disability allowance of a person (details supplied). [23967/16]
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 convene an oral hearing in this case.
Every effort will be made to hear the case as quickly as possible and the appellant will be informed when arrangements for the oral hearing have been made.
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.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
354. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of an application for illness benefit of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23983/16]
View answerIllness benefit is a payment for people who cannot work due to illness and who satisfy the pay related social insurance (PRSI) contribution conditions. One of the PRSI conditions is that a person must have a minimum of 39 reckonable contributions paid or credited in the governing contribution year. Claims made in 2016 are governed by the 2014 tax year, and only PRSI Classes A, E, H, and P are reckonable for illness benefit purposes.
The person concerned made a claim to illness benefit and this claim was received in my department on 15 June 2016. This claim was disallowed as the person concerned does not satisfy the above contribution criteria. According to my Departments records the person concerned has no contributions or credits for the 2014 year.
The person concerned has been notified of this decision.
An application for disability allowance has also been received from the person concerned. This is a means tested payment, where a person has a disability which is expected to last for at least twelve months. On completion of the necessary investigations on all aspects of this claim a decision will be made and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
If the person concerned is unable to meet their needs or the needs of their household, they may be entitled to supplementary welfare allowance and should contact the Department's community welfare services at their local Intreo centre.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy
355. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of an application for carer's allowance of a person (details supplied). [23994/16]
View answerAn application for carer's allowance (CA) was received from the person concerned on 17 February 2016.
It is a condition for receipt of a CA that the person being cared for must have a disability whose effect is that they require full-time care and attention.
This is defined as requiring from another person, continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout the day in connection with normal bodily functions or continuous supervision in order to avoid danger to him or herself and likely to require that level of care for at least twelve months.
It is a further condition for receipt of CA that the carer provides full-time care and attention to the care recipient.
A person can be considered to be providing full-time care and attention where they are engaged in employment, self-employment or on training courses outside the home for a maximum of 15 hours per week, provided that they can show to the satisfaction of a deciding officer that adequate care has been provided for the care recipient in their absence.
A deciding officer, having examined all the available evidence, has decided that neither condition is fulfilled in this case.
The person concerned was notified on 30 June 2016 of this decision, the reason for it and of his right of review and appeal.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
356. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of the jobseeker's allowance and disability allowance payments to persons (details supplied); the steps being taken to ensure that families do not suffer hardship as a result of a decision that is unsound; if this intervention will be accepted as an appeal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23998/16]
View answerThe entitlement to Jobseeker's Allowance of the person concerned was reviewed on 29 May 2016. At this review, specific documentation was requested from the person concerned by the Social Welfare Inspector. The documentation remained outstanding and written correspondence was issued to the person concerned on 8 June 2016 requesting their submission. The documentation was not submitted and a disallowance issued to the person concerned on 7 July 2016. It is open to the person concerned to submit all outstanding documentation to the local office and a review of entitlement will recommence. The person concerned was advised that he can appeal the decision to disallow his claim to the Social Welfare Appeals Office. As a result of this representation an appeals form has been forwarded to him for completion.
An application for invalidity pension by the second person concerned was received by the Department on 7 July 2016 and is currently being processed. The person concerned will be notified of the outcome as soon as this process is complete.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy
357. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the current status of the disability allowance payment to a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23999/16]
View answerThe person in question appealed to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office (SWAO) a decision by a deciding officer to disallow his application for disability allowance (DA). Following due consideration of all the available evidence, the appeal was disallowed by an appeals officer (AO) on 16 February 2016. The person in question was notified of this decision in writing by the SWAO on the same date.
An AO’s decision is final and conclusive in absence of any fresh facts or evidence.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
358. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of a carer's allowance application in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24009/16]
View answerMy department informs me that there is no application for carer’s allowance (CA) from the person concerned that is awaiting a decision. If the person in question wants to make an application for CA, she should do so by completing and submitting the relevant application form (Form CR1). If an application has been submitted only in the past few days then there is no need to resubmit.
An application for CA was received from the person concerned on 22 September 2015.
It is a condition for receipt of a CA that the person being cared for must have a disability whose effect is that they require full-time care and attention.
This is defined as requiring from another person, continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout the day in connection with normal bodily functions or continuous supervision in order to avoid danger to him or herself and likely to require that level of care for at least twelve months.
The evidence submitted in support of this application was examined and the deciding officer decided that this evidence did not indicate that the requirement for full-time care was satisfied.
The person concerned was notified on 19 November 2015 of this decision, the reason for it and of her right of review and appeal.
There has been no contact from the person concerned since.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
359. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the payment available in respect of the family of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24010/16]
View answerI understand the Deputy is asking about the possibility of Guardian’s payment for the person concerned. A decision on entitlement to a guardian’s payment can only be made following receipt of a completed application form by the Department of Social Protection. Accordingly, an application form for a guardian’s payment has been sent to the person concerned.
On receipt of the completed form, a Deciding Officer will examine the person’s eligibility for the scheme and make a decision on their entitlement.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
360. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason for a deduction in payment in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24015/16]
View answerThe person concerned is in receipt of a one parent family payment and has a deduction in respect of maintenance received for her two children.
The claim of the person concerned is under review at present.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
