Thomas Gould
Question:12. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will expand the eligibility for the fuel allowance payment. [14837/22]
View answerSocial Welfare Benefits
Questions (12)
Written answers
The eligibility criteria for Fuel Allowance ensures that the payment goes to those who are more vulnerable to fuel poverty including those reliant on social protection payments for longer periods and who are unlikely to have additional resources of their own.
As part of Budget 2022, I announced a number of expansions to the eligibility criteria for the Fuel Allowance payment.
The weekly means threshold for the Fuel Allowance scheme was increased by €20 to €120 above the appropriate rate of contributory State pension representing a 20% increase in the threshold which enables more people to qualify for this support. The €120 allowable means limit is significantly more than the €33 weekly rate of Fuel Allowance.
With effect from September 2022 the qualifying period for Jobseeker’s and Supplementary Welfare Allowance recipients to be in a position to access the Fuel Allowance payment will be reduced from 15 to 12 months.
The Government has, therefore, implemented significant improvements in relation to Fuel Allowance through Budget 2022. Any proposal for further changes to the eligibility criteria would have to be considered in this context and in the context of the overall policy and budgetary situation.
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. Decisions on such payments are made on a case-by-case basis.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
Questions Nos. 13 and 14 answered orally.
Pension Provisions
Questions (15)
Richard Bruton
Question:15. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Social Protection the projections for the annual collection of funds under an auto enrolment pension scheme; if it is proposed to deploy these funds for specific purposes; and if not, will they be managed in a particular way. [14875/22]
View answerWritten answers
The Programme for Government commits to introducing a pensions automatic enrolment (AE) system. A key objective in establishing this system is to address the low proportion of employees in Ireland with supplementary pension cover, which includes both occupational and personal pensions.
According to CSO figures, the rate of active supplementary pension coverage is around 56% of the working population (Pension Coverage Survey 2021). It is estimated that this rate could be as low as 35% when the private sector is considered in isolation. As a consequence of this low supplementary pension coverage rate, many retirees may suffer an unwanted reduction in living standards when they retire.
My Department has finalised a proposal for Government on the overall design of the Auto Enrolment system and I intend to bring that to Government for consideration towards the end of this month. If that proposal is approved, I will be publishing the design in detail, including how the system will be administered and how savings can be invested.
In the meantime I can confirm, as previously agreed by Government, that:
- There will be a phased roll-out, over a decade, of the contributions made by workers and employers.
- Matching contributions will be made by both workers and employers and the State will top up those contributions.
- There will be an opt-out provision for those who choose to opt out.
- Workers will have a range of retirement savings funds to choose from.
- There will be a charges cap imposed on fund managers.
I hope this clarifies the matter at this time.
Question No. 16 answered orally.
Ukraine War
Questions (17)
Pádraig O'Sullivan
Question:17. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Social Protection the measures that her Department is taking to support Ukrainians arriving in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14761/22]
View answerWritten answers
People arriving from Ukraine have been granted the status to avail of income supports from the Department of Social Protection under the EU Temporary Protection Directive.
A reception centre has been set up in Dublin Airport where officials from my Department and from the Department of Justice are available to meet people fleeing the war in Ukraine. They will be given correspondence by the Department of Justice confirming that they have been granted Temporary Protection and are permitted to reside in Ireland for a period of 1 year, a period which may be extended.
They will be eligible for financial support initially under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme. Under the Temporary Protection Directive, Ukrainian citizens and others fleeing the war will be deemed to satisfy the Habitual Residence Condition, or HRC, and the relevant means test.
My Department has also established a number of additional dedicated centres in Dublin and Cork cities and intends to open a further centre in Limerick this week. Community Welfare Officers and Interpreters are available at all of these centres. Department staff are also meeting people arriving on the ferry at Rosslare port and are reaching out to visit people accommodated in hotels provided by the Department of Children, Disability, Equality and Integration.
A fast-track approach has been put in place which includes quick processing of PPSNs and a simplified decision-making process for applications for supplementary welfare allowance. The aim is to process applications as quickly and efficiently as possible to provide immediate financial assistance to these people. My Department will also arrange for payments such as child benefit to be made within a very short period.
Interpretation services are available at the reception centre in Dublin Airport and are also available by phone if required to assist Ukrainian citizens to access my Department’s services.
Social Welfare Benefits
Questions (18)
Seán Sherlock
Question:18. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will amend the eligibility criteria for the fuel allowance to take those with occupational pensions into account. [14856/22]
View answerWritten answers
To receive Fuel Allowance an applicant must be in receipt of a qualifying DSP payment, satisfy a means test and satisfy the household composition test. This ensures that the Fuel Allowance payment goes to those who are more vulnerable to fuel poverty including those reliant on social protection payments for longer periods and those who are unlikely to have additional resources of their own.
It should be noted that receipt of an occupational pension in itself does not debar an applicant from receiving Fuel Allowance. If an applicant is in receipt of a qualifying payment and an occupational pension, the amount of occupational pension received will be included in the means test to determine whether the applicant will qualify for the Fuel Allowance payment. In Budget 2022, I increased the weekly means threshold for the Fuel Allowance scheme by €20 to €120 above the appropriate rate of contributory State pension which enabled more people in receipt of occupational pensions to qualify for this support.
Any decision to change the qualifying criteria for fuel allowance to exempt income from occupational pensions from the means test would have very significant budgetary consequences and would result in many better off families qualifying for the payment. Such a decision could only be considered while taking account of the overall budgetary context and the core policy priority to direct scarce resources to those most in need.
Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, support may be available to those in receipt of occupational pensions who are struggling with the cost of heating their homes. 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. Decisions on such payments are made on a case-by-case basis.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
Ukraine War
Questions (19)
Aindrias Moynihan
Question:19. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for Social Protection the response of her Department to the Ukrainian war crisis; the measures that are being taken to ensure that all applications to her Department will not incur undue delay; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14852/22]
View answerWritten answers
My Department is prioritising the allocation of Public Personal Service numbers, or PPSNs, to people arriving from Ukraine and the immediate provision of income supports.
A fast track approach in processing these supports has been put in place which includes a simplified decision making process and quick processing of PPSNs to allow people access to public services. The aim is to process applications as quickly and efficiently as possible to provide immediate financial assistance. Thereafter arrangements will be made to approve the appropriate primary social welfare payments. We have also arranged for payments such as child benefit to be made within a very short period.
People will be eligible for financial support initially under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme. Ukrainian citizens and others fleeing the war who are covered by the Directive are deemed to satisfy the Habitual Residence Condition, or HRC, and their means are assessed as nil.
A reception centre has been set up in Dublin Airport where officials from my Department and the Department of Justice are available to meet people fleeing the war in Ukraine. My Department has also established a number of additional dedicated centres in Dublin and Cork cities and intends to open a further centre in Limerick this week. Community Welfare Officers and Interpreters are available at all of these centres. Department staff are also meeting people arriving on the ferry at Rosslare port and are reaching out to visit people accommodated in hotels provided by the Department of Children, Disability, Equality and Integration.
Social Welfare Rates
Questions (20)
Claire Kerrane
Question:20. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Social Protection if she intends to address the rate of jobseeker’s allowance for young people following her Department’s report on the issue considering that the payment is currently set well below the poverty line; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14844/22]
View answerWritten answers
Young people on lower rates of jobseeker payments can avail of the full adult rate if they participate on any of the large range of education, training or employment programmes available through Intreo and the ETBs. This payment structure was deliberately designed to giving young jobseekers a strong financial incentive to engage in education and training or to take up employment. Ultimately it is through engaging in education, training or employment programmes that young people can improve their employment prospects. This approach is not unique to Ireland; a number of other countries have similarly reduced unemployment payments for young jobseekers.
There are exceptions to the application of the age related rates including for those living independently of family members and in State supported housing.
A key priority for this Government is to get these young people back to work or into training and education. As we move away from Covid restrictions, there has been a strong exit from unemployment as the economy has re-opened.
Prior to the pandemic, the seasonally adjusted youth unemployment rate for 2019 averaged approximately 12.5 percent. At its peak in May 2020, the Covid-adjusted unemployment rate for people under the age of 25 was 70 percent. This has fallen substantially, to around 13 percent as of February 2022, or 12.6 percent according to the traditional seasonally adjusted measure.
In addition, the recently published Pathways to Work 2021-2025 has a particular focus on young jobseekers and provides for the following key measures in this regard:
- Ring-fenced places on the Work Placement Experience Programme for young people.
- Expanding the JobsPlus scheme to 8,000 places and enhancing the incentive to recruit young jobseekers in particular, by increasing the youth age limit from 25 to 30 years. The subsidy is available, on an earlier basis than normal, to employers when they recruit young people.
- Providing 50,000 additional further education and training places.
- Additional Community Employment and Tús places for young people.
- Targeting 10,000 apprentice registrations per year by 2025.
My Department will continue to monitor and evaluate Government’s policy in this area focusing on getting young people back to work or into training and education, thereby reducing their future risk of poverty.