Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 October 2018
235. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if a back to work enterprise allowance claim by a person (details supplied) will be reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40476/18]
View answerThe purpose of the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance Scheme (BTWEA) is to encourage people who are unemployed, lone parents, people with disabilities and other social welfare customers to become self-employed and, ultimately, to no longer be dependent on welfare.
The BTWEA scheme conditions specify that the person applying for the allowance should have a sufficiently large and diverse customer base, and that a business that comprises of sub-contracting, particularly in the construction section where the subcontractor is likely to have only one customer i.e. the principal contractor to whom they are contracted, is not eligible.
The client base of a new enterprise may be difficult to establish on awarding a new claim for BTWEA. In this case the person in question confirmed in his business plan that he was targeting a good customer base of home owners and builders primarily in Dublin and the West of Ireland.
Following an examination of the BTWEA claim of the person concerned by a Case Officer in August 2018, the person's claim was terminated as the Case Officer determined on the basis of all available evidence that the self-employment in question is based on sub-contracting from one main contractor only.
Following a subsequent review of the claim in September 2018 the decision to disallow the BTWEA claim was upheld.
