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Thursday, 18 Oct 2018

Written Answers Nos. 324-335

Fuel Allowance Applications

Questions (324)

Marc MacSharry

Question:

324. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) in County Sligo was refused the fuel allowance even though their combined income from their State pension (contributory) and disablement benefit is under the weekly income limit of €343.30 in order to qualify for the free fuel allowance; her plans to amend the operational guidelines for the free fuel allowance scheme to make disablement benefit a qualifying payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42809/18]

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Written answers

The fuel allowance is a payment of €22.50 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €630 each year) from October to April, to over 368,000 low income households, at an estimated cost of €227 million in 2018. 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. It 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 under the house hold benefits scheme at an estimated cost of €182 million in 2018.

Disablement benefit it is not a qualifying payment for fuel allowance and therefore, no fuel allowance is payable if a person in a household is in receipt of disablement benefit.

Any decision to include disablement benefit as a qualifying payment or a disregarded payment for fuel allowance would have budgetary consequences and would have to be considered in the context of budget negotiations.

Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, exceptional needs payments may be made to help meet an essential, once-off cost which customers are unable to meet out of their own resources and this may include exceptional heating costs.

In 2016 the Government launched a comprehensive Strategy to Combat Energy Poverty following extensive public consultation. This Strategy is spearheaded by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment. It sets out the Government’s commitment to protecting vulnerable households from energy poverty through a combination of supports, investment in schemes to improve energy efficiency, and energy efficiency awareness initiatives. One of the best ways to tackle fuel poverty in the long term is to improve the energy efficiency of the dwelling through proper building and household insulation. The Warmer Homes Scheme, administered by Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland, is designed to do that.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Jobseeker's Allowance Appeals

Questions (325)

Frank O'Rourke

Question:

325. Deputy Frank O'Rourke asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when a decision on a jobseeker's allowance appeal will be made on behalf of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42811/18]

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Written answers

The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal by the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer who will consider the appeal in the light of all of the evidence submitted. It is expected that a decision will issue to the person concerned within the next week.

The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister of Employment Affairs and 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.

Ministerial Meetings

Questions (326)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

326. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she and-or her departmental officials have met a person (details supplied) and-or representatives of companies in the past two years to date; if so, if she will publish a schedule of those meetings and the associated minutes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42820/18]

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Written answers

The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection has not met the names person(s) or representatives of companies in the past two years to date.

Illness Benefit Data

Questions (327)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

327. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of claimants in receipt of illness benefit who were negatively impacted upon by the issues in the recent illness benefit system roll-out; the number of late payments that were made; the number of weeks' payments that were late; the way in which she plans to communicate with impacted applicants; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42846/18]

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Written answers

My Department recently moved to new IT system and this has impacted on payments to some Illness Benefit customers. The transition from the old to the new system has involved moving from a payment in arrears system to a real-time system for Illness Benefit.

The Department acknowledges that this move has caused difficulties for some customers, leading to a large volume of calls to its helpline and delays in responding to calls. In order to address this, the Department is taking urgent action to deploy additional staff to manage customer calls.

I want to assure IB customers that where issues have arisen, that these customers will be paid the correct amount for the period of their illness - as certified by their GP. Any customer who has an urgent financial need can apply to the Department's Community Welfare Service to receive an interim payment. Customers in these circumstances should get in touch with their local Intreo Centre.

My Department is working hard to resolve the payment issues as quickly as possible.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Departmental Communications

Questions (328)

Catherine Murphy

Question:

328. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to resource staff to address the tasks of answering telephone inquiries from claimants, particularly in respect of the recent problems with claimants trying to call to inquire about missing illness benefit payments; if she has given consideration to allocating more resources to customer facing roles in view of the fact this is the main barrier to applicants when queries arise; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42847/18]

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Written answers

My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are made as quickly as possible.

I understand and deeply regret the inconvenience and upset caused to customers by delays in processing illness benefit applications and issuing payments. I understand that this inconvenience is being compounded by the difficulties we are experiencing in responding to the significant volume of customers queries. My Department is working hard to resolve these issues as quickly as possible and in this regard I can confirm that extra staffing resources have been assigned.

The staffing needs for all areas within the Department are continuously reviewed, taking account of workloads, management priorities and the on-going need to respond to new increasing demands in a wide range of services. This is to ensure that the best use is made of all available resources with a view to providing an efficient service to those who rely on the schemes operated by the Department.

Domiciliary Care Allowance Applications

Questions (329)

Pat Breen

Question:

329. Deputy Pat Breen asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of an application by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42982/18]

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Written answers

An application for domiciliary care allowance was received from the person concerned on 25 May 2018. The application was not allowed as the child was not considered to satisfy the qualifying conditions for the allowance. A letter issued on 21 August 2018 setting out the decision of the deciding officer to refuse the allowance.

A review of this decision was requested on 24 August 2018 and an appeal was also submitted on 30 August 2018. The application will be re-examined by a deciding officer and a revised decision will be made if warranted. Alternatively, the case will be referred for consideration by the Social Welfare Appeals Office. The person concerned will be notified of the outcome of the deciding officer's review as soon as it is completed.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Illness Benefit Applications

Questions (330)

Robert Troy

Question:

330. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if an application for illness benefit by a person (details supplied) will be expedited; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42987/18]

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Written answers

In recent weeks, the Department experienced some delays following the introduction of a new system for Illness Benefit. The change is part of a programme of modernisation in the Department which took effect from Monday 6th August.

The claim from the person concerned has been processed and he is in receipt of his full entitlement under the Illness Benefit scheme and all arrears owing to him have been issued.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Illness Benefit Data

Questions (331)

John Brady

Question:

331. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of medical review forms issued to illness benefit recipients to date in 2018; the number of forms that were sent to the same person more than once; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42989/18]

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Written answers

My Department is obliged to assess continued medical eligibility for all Illness Benefit (IB) claims. The aim of the form that is issued in this regard is to enable the customer to provide a self-assessment of how their illness is impacting their ability to return to work. This engagement takes place before a decision is made whether or not to refer a customer for a medical assessment.

My Department recently moved to new IT system and this has impacted on payments to some Illness Benefit customers. The transition from the old to the new system has involved moving from a payment in arrears system to a real-time system for Illness Benefit. As is the case in nearly every new system deployment some teething issues emerge post-implementation that require fast turnaround fixes. In this case an issue in the system caused a number of forms to be sent in error to some customers. The Department sincerely apologises for any confusion or distress this may have caused. The issue was identified quickly and was fixed and the matter has now been resolved.

I want to assure the Deputy that no customer claims were closed and no payments were affected as a result of this issue.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Illness Benefit Reform

Questions (332)

John Brady

Question:

332. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her views on the new automated system in place within the illness benefit section; the issues that have arisen; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42990/18]

View answer

Written answers

My Department recently moved to new IT system and this has impacted on payments to some Illness Benefit customers. The transition from the old to the new system has involved moving from a payment in arrears system to a real-time system for Illness Benefit.

The Department acknowledges that this move has caused difficulties for some customers, leading to a large volume of calls to its helpline and delays in responding to calls. In order to address this, the Department is taking urgent action to deploy additional staff to manage customer calls.

I want to assure IB customers that where issues have arisen, that these customers will be paid the correct amount for the period of their illness - as certified by their GP. Any customer who has an urgent financial need can apply to the Department's Community Welfare Service to receive an interim payment. Customers in these circumstances should get in touch with their local Intreo Centre.

My Department is working hard to resolve the payment issues as quickly as possible.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Community Employment Schemes Eligibility

Questions (333)

Bernard Durkan

Question:

333. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if permission will be granted to extend the duration of a scheme for a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43006/18]

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Written answers

The person concerned has completed three years on a Community Employment Scheme (CE) which is the maximum amount as per the Government strategy of July 2017. However, provision has been put in place under CE (Service Support Stream - SSS) for older jobseekers, ages 62 years and older. Places under this option is limited to 10% of participants per individual scheme. This offers North Kildare Leisure Centre CE three SSS places. The sponsors of this scheme can now be invited to make a request to have the person concerned transferred into a place under the Service Support Stream option.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Community Employment Schemes Eligibility

Questions (334)

Bernard Durkan

Question:

334. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if permission will be granted to extend the duration of a scheme for a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43007/18]

View answer

Written answers

The person concerned has participated on a Community Employment Scheme (CE ) from 28/10/2013 and their current finish date is 19/10/2018. This brings their total time spent on CE to 5 Years.

Based on the records the participant was on the Part Time Integration Option (pre July 2017) . This option allowed for a maximum duration of 2 years continuous participation on CE. The correct termination date in their case should have been 23/10/2015. However it appears that in 2013, the person concerned was classified as a participant under Part Time Job Option in error which allowed them three extra years on the program.

My Department will examine the person's continuing entitlement and employment support options.

Jobseeker's Allowance Eligibility

Questions (335)

Bernard Durkan

Question:

335. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when a person (details supplied) will receive a jobseeker's payment and arrears owed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43016/18]

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Written answers

The person concerned was requested to send in documentation in order for a review to be carried out on his Jobseekers Allowance claim. On receipt of all the documentation on 11 October 2018 a full review was completed. The Deciding Officer informed the person concerned by letter, dated 12 October 2018, that the payment was reinstated and outlined the payment collection details. The person concerned Jobseekers Allowance weekly payment & arrears due were in the Post Office on 17 October 2018.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

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