Written Answers Nos. 124-143
124. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the benefit of S class contributions which a person (details supplied) was deemed to make, arising from income received from an approved retirement scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33108/23]
View answerThe person concerned was awarded the maximum rate State Pension (contributory) with effect from 19th May 2023.
The class S contributions paid by the person concerned were included in the calculation for their State Pension (contributory).
There has been an extensive expansion of access to the range of social insurance benefits for self-employed contributors in recent years without any increase in the 4% rate of contribution made by them. Where all qualification criteria for the particular scheme are satisfied, PRSI contributions in Class S give access to the following benefits:
• State Pension (Contributory);
• Adoptive Benefit;
• Guardian's Payment (Contributory);
• Jobseeker's Benefit (Self-Employed);
• Invalidity Pension (for long term illness);
• Maternity Benefit;
• Parent's Benefit;
• Partial Capacity Benefit;
• Paternity Benefit;
• Treatment Benefit; and
• Widows, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) Pension.
Self-employed people who cannot work because of a long-term illness or disability may qualify for Invalidity Pension or Disability Allowance. Further information on these schemes is available at www.gov.ie/illnessdisabilitycaring
My Department keeps its range of supports under review to ensure that they meet their overall objectives. Any changes to the current system would need to be considered in an overall policy and budgetary context and also in the context of the sustainability of the Social Insurance Fund.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
125. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Social Protection whether the allocation for school lunches for secondary schools included in DEIS in 2022 differs from the allocation for existing DEIS secondary schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32862/23]
View answerThe School Meals Programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to some 1,600 schools and organisations benefitting 260,000 children. The objective of the programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement.
Budget 2023 provided €94.4 million for the programme. The Government recently approved an additional €14.5m to allow access to the Hot School Meals scheme for all remaining DEIS schools from September 2023.
Funding under the school meals scheme can be provided for breakfast, snack, cold lunch, dinner, hot school meals and afterschool clubs and is based on a maximum rate per child per day, depending on the type of meal being provided, e.g. €1.70 per child per day where a cold lunch club is being provided, €2.50 per child per day where a dinner club is being provided and €3.20 per child per day where a Hot Meal club is being provided. Dinner clubs provide a hot meal but are different from the Hot School Meals clubs in that they tend to be provided by schools with onsite cooking facilities whereas food for Hot Meals clubs is cooked offsite and either delivered hot or reheated in the school. Secondary schools in the DEIS scheme prior to 2022 qualified for a breakfast or snack and a lunch or dinner.
Since my appointment as Minister for Social Protection, I have increased the number of schools with access to the Hot School Meal option from 37 to over 500. I am committed to continuing to expand the School Meals Programme and building further on the significant extension of the programme that has taken place in recent years. In this regard, I intend to roll out the Hot School Meals to all remaining DEIS primary and Special schools from September 2023, benefiting more than 60,000 children.
As part of significant plans to extend the Hot School Meals to all children in the coming years all remaining primary schools have been contacted and have been asked to submit an expression of interest form if their school is interested in commencing the provision of hot school meals. From 2024, I intend commencing the roll-out of Hot School Meals to all remaining primary schools on a phased basis.
Any additional measures to expand the coverage of other meal options to new DEIS secondary schools would have to be considered in a budgetary context. I trust this clarifies the matter.
126. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will guarantee that the auto-enrolled pension scheme will not invest in fossil fuels or the arms industry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32930/23]
View answer127. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Social Protection if a minimum percentage of the funds of the auto-enrolled pension scheme will be invested in Irish renewable energy developments in order to work toward our climate action obligations; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32931/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 126 and 127 together.
The introduction of a pensions auto-enrolment system is a Programme for Government commitment, and a key priority for me as Minister for Social Protection.Last year, I published 'The Design Principles for Ireland’s Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System', which set out the new system in detail.A dedicated project team in the Department of Social Protection is solely focused on implementing the agreed design, including by drafting the necessary legislation that will underpin it, designing the organisational structures and the technical system to operate it, and communicating this landmark reform to stakeholders and the public.Several workstreams are being progressed in parallel, among which is the drafting of the AE Bill in conjunction with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel, which I expect to publish later this year.The Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection recently published its report on the pre-legislative scrutiny of the Heads of Bill to establish the AE system, setting out 21 observations and recommendations. I am considering these recommendations in the drafting of the Bill, but would note that several of them are already incorporated in the design agreed by Government for implementation in a later phase once the system is bedded in. Other recommendations cannot be accommodated as they would require considerable change to the design already agreed by Government. The completion of the Committee’s scrutiny of the AE Heads of Bill nevertheless represents an important step in the legislative process.Among the recommendations of the JOC are some relating to environmental concerns and the arms industry. In that context, it is important to state that the primary aim of investing AE participants’ funds is to provide a good financial return for them, so that they may have an adequate supplementary income that is over and above the level of the State Pension when they retire.
To manage and administer the AE system, a Central Processing Authority (CPA) will be established. It will procure, through the open financial services market, investment management services on behalf of AE participants. I want to make it clear to the Deputy that the CPA will not be administering a new State fund, but rather will be administering hundreds of thousands of individual savings accounts that are, and will remain, the personal property of the AE participants. The AE project is, in that sense, a State-incentivised personal savings scheme for individuals rather than a new national fund. In that context, the CPA and investment managers will have a duty to, first and foremost, get a good financial return for participants.
In designing high level investment strategies and in contracting for investment services, the Board of the CPA will be guided by both the prudent person principle as well as the need to ensure investments take account of environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles. Such principles would include taking pollution caused by fossil fuels and concerns relating to the arms industry into consideration as part of the overarching, long-term strategy.
I hope this clarifies matters for the Deputy.
128. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if someone who has been receiving jobseeker’s allowance for a period of 18 months applies for disability allowance, does their jobseeker’s payment cease immediately, or does it continue until a decision regarding the disability allowance application is reached; if the payment is ceased is there a requirement for the individual to apply for supplementary welfare allowance in the interim; and in the event that the first application for disability allowance is unsuccessful what payment does the person revert to. [32932/23]
View answerA person in receipt of Jobseeker’s Allowance may make an application for Disability Allowance.
Jobseeker’s Allowance should continue to be paid until a decision, including an Appeal where applicable, is made on the Disability Allowance claim.
If the application for Disability Allowance is unsuccessful for failing to satisfy the medical eligibility criteria for receipt of Disability Allowance, payment of Jobseeker’s Allowance may continue, subject to all qualifying conditions being satisfied.
If the application for Disability Allowance is unsuccessful but the person does not satisfy all the Jobseeker’s Allowance qualifying conditions including being capable of work, the person could apply for a Supplementary Welfare Allowance payment from their local Community Welfare Services.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
129. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if a person is awarded disability allowance and transitions from jobseeker’s allowance does this change their eligibility for the Christmas bonus associated with long-term social welfare payments. [32933/23]
View answerLast December the Christmas Bonus was paid to approximately 1.3 million pensioners, people with disabilities, carers, lone parents and long-term unemployed people in recognition of their long-term financial dependence on their social welfare payment for all, or most, of their income.
Jobseekers are eligible for the Bonus if they are long-term recipients of a jobseeker payment (over 12 months). Those in receipt of Disability Allowance are eligible for the Bonus with no duration requirement. Therefore, a person who has transferred from Jobseeker's Allowance to Disability Allowance would be eligible for the Christmas Bonus once they are in receipt of Disability Allowance in the relevant week.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
130. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if a person receiving disability allowance is permitted to participate in a part-time springboard course or other ETB training options. [32934/23]
View answerMy Department provides a wide range of income supports for people who are unable to work due to illness or disability.
Disability Allowance is a means-tested payment for people with a disability, aged between 16 and 66 years, who are habitually resident in Ireland. Eligibility for the scheme includes the requirement that the disability must be expected to last for at least one year, and substantially restrict a person’s ability to work.
Person's in receipt of Disability Allowance can undertake further educational opportunities, including part-time springboard courses, without it affecting their Disability Allowance payment.
If a person is eighteen or over, and is in receipt of Disability Allowance for the required period and attending a full-time second level or level course at a recognised school or college, they may be able to avail of the Back to Education Allowance Scheme.
Where a person on Disability Allowance takes part in a Solas/ETB training course, they transfer from their social welfare payment to a Training Allowance, though they continue to be paid at the same rate.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
131. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Social Protection if there is any progress in establishing a family maintenance collection agency to follow up on those who do not keep their commitments to pay maintenance as legally required. [32942/23]
View answerMy Department has no role with regard to the enforcement of maintenance orders.
In 2020, the Government established the Child Maintenance Review Group to examine and report on:(i) The current treatment within the Department of Social Protection of child maintenance payments,
(ii) The current provisions relating to the liable relatives regarding child maintenance, and(iii) The establishment of a State Child Maintenance Agency.
The Group's report was published last November, and the Government accepted its recommendations in relation to the social welfare system. I am pleased to say that, pending the introduction of the necessary legislation, my Department has already implemented some of the recommended changes on an administrative basis.As a result, my Department is no longer applying the "efforts to seek maintenance" requirement to One-Parent Family Payment and Jobseeker's Transitional Payment. This requirement often involved lone parents having to go to Court to seek a maintenance order, so this change will remove a potential additional stress for them, as well as helping to reduce the burden on our courts system.
In addition, the liable relative provisions are not being applied to new claims for One-Parent Family Payment. This means that my Department will no longer seek to recoup a portion of claim costs from the non-resident parent in these cases. I want to be very clear that removing these provisions does not replace or supersede the primary responsibility of parents to maintain their children.
Furthermore, child maintenance payments will be disregarded in the means test for social welfare payments. This measure will mean that many lone parents currently on reduced rates of payment will see their payment increase and some additional lone parents will qualify for a payment. It is estimated that this measure will be of direct benefit to approximately 16,000 lone parents at a cost of approximately €10 million per year.
These are very significant reforms of the social welfare system which will be of great benefit to lone parents. These changes require amendments to both primary and secondary legislation as well as changes to some of my Department’s systems, application forms and processes. Work on the legislation is at an advanced stage. In the meantime, as I have outlined, a number of the recommendations are being implemented on an administrative basis.
There was no consensus among the Group members regarding the establishment of a Child Maintenance Agency and there are no plans to establish such a body. However, the Minister for Justice is planning significant reforms in the family justice area. I am particularly pleased that the Family Justice Strategy includes a commitment to undertake a review of the enforcement of maintenance orders. I understand that this is ongoing and due to be completed in the coming months.
I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
132. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection if an appeal sent in April 2023 against the decision to refuse application for a carer's support grant and a respite grant was received and registered in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32963/23]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that there is no record of any appeal in respect of a Carers Support Grant by the person concerned having been received by that office. In light of your request, the Appeals Office has written to the person to advise of same and also requesting details of the appeal request.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
133. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Social Protection if a decision has been made on an appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32992/23]
View answerThe Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that there is no record of any State Pension Contributory appeal by the person concerned having been registered by that office. In light of your request, the Appeals Office has written to the person concerned to advise of same and also requesting details of the appeal application request.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
134. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Social Protection the pay and any other benefits, including any loyalty payments/bonuses or other benefit-in-kind, of each chief executive of State/semi-State body or other public body under the aegis of her Department for each year since 2020, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33059/23]
View answerThe statutory bodies operating under the aegis of my Department are the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Authority, the Pensions Council and the Social Welfare Tribunal.
Neither the Pensions Council nor the Social Welfare Tribunal have Chief Executive Officers. The administrative functions of both these bodies is carried out wholly by existing staff resources provided from within my Department.
Details in relation to the pay of the of the Chief Executive Officers of the Citizens Information Board and the Pensions Authority is set out in tabular format below:
Citizens Information Board (CIB)
There were two Chief Executive Officers of the CIB during the period in question, Ms. Angela Black from 2020 to April 2021 and Ms. Fiona Coyne from April 2021 to the present. Details of their gross pay is outlined below. Neither was in receipt of any other benefits like loyalty payments/bonuses or other benefits-in-kind during the period in question.
|
Name of Chief Executive |
Renumeration received (by year) |
|
Angela Black |
€118,797 (2020)€38,227 (Jan 2021 to April 2021) |
|
Fiona Coyne |
€86,408 (April 2021 to December 2021)€130,504 (2022)€67,367 (Jan 2023 to June 2023) |
Pensions Authority
The Pensions Regulator, Mr. Brendan Kennedy, is the Chief Executive Officer of the Pensions Authority. Details of his gross pay is outlined below. Mr. Kennedy was not in receipt of any other benefits, including loyalty payments/bonuses or other benefits-in-kind during the period in question.
|
Name of Chief Executive |
Renumeration received (by year) |
|
Brendan Kennedy (Pensions Regulator) |
€160,524 (2020) €163,327 (2021) €171,036 (2022) €87,599 (2023 as at end June) |
135. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Social Protection to examine, with urgency, a situation (details supplied). [33069/23]
View answerThe Deputy will appreciate that I am unable to comment or intervene on issues relating to a particular pension scheme.
My Department has no role in setting the level of pension increases received by members of occupational pension schemes. Pension increases are entirely a matter for the scheme trustees and relevant sponsoring employer. Matters directly related to the semi-state company referred to by the Deputy come under the remit of the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
136. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason an income derived from contributions made by a PAYE employee to an approved retirement scheme is now deemed to be in self-employment when applying for jobseeker’s transition payment in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33107/23]
View answerThe Person Concerned applied for Benefit Payment for 65-Year-Olds(BP65) on the 24/05/2022. This application was refused on the basis that the qualifying conditions attached to the scheme were not satisfied.
The Person Concerned appealed the decision on 3/6/22, stating that they had not been employed or self-employed since December 2017. The Appeals Officer concluded that the Person Concerned continues to be a self-employed contributor in respect of their Approved Retirement Fund income and therefore has not established that they meet the requirements as set out in the legislation and so the Appeal was disallowed.
137. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Social Protection when the backdated increase in child benefit to the qualified child will be paid to a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33115/23]
View answerChild Benefit is a monthly payment to the parents or guardians of children under 16 years of age. Child Benefit can also be claimed for children aged 16 and 17, if they are in full-time education or full-time training or have a disability and cannot support themselves.
A cost of living bonus of €100 per child was paid in June 2023 as part of the Government's commitment to supporting families.
The bonus was paid to the customer concerned with the June Child Benefit payment. A total payment of €960 issued to her financial institution on 6 June 2023.
I trust this helps clarify the matter for the deputy.
138. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of instances in which her Department used unlicensed software and/or lapsed licenced software in the past ten years to date; the associated expenditure on same to remedy the situation; and the software that was used. [33163/23]
View answerThe situation described has not arisen in the Department of Social Protection during this period.
139. Deputy Michael Lowry asked the Minister for Social Protection to confirm the qualifications of the officers and staff within her Department who are responsible for medically assessing applications for carer's allowance and disability allowance; if she will clarify whether the staff members who review the medical reports of these applications on appeal hold a more senior medical qualification from those who initially assess and reject the original application (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33181/23]
View answerMedical Assessors are fully qualified and experienced practitioners who provide independent, informed opinions on applications to the illness, disability & caring schemes, for the guidance of the Department's Deciding Officers.
Many of the Medical Assessors have specialist post-graduate qualifications, knowledge, or training such as Psychiatry, Rheumatology, Surgery, Occupational Medicine, Public Health, Anaesthesiology & General Practice et cetera and all have received structured training in disability evaluation and the operation of the Department's schemes.
The Medical Assessors have an ongoing commitment to continuing medical education to ensure that standards are maintained and enhanced.
When a request for review and/or appeal, a different Medical Assessor is assigned to review the application de novo as well as considering the newly submitted information.
The Medical Assessors assess each case, based on the information provided against the qualifying criteria for the relevant scheme. In Disability Allowance, the medical qualifying criteria is as follow :-
• The person must be suffering from an injury, disease, congenital deformity or physical or mental illness or defect which has continued or may reasonably be expected to continue for a period of at least a year
and
• as a result of the condition and for no other reason the person is substantially restricted in undertaking work which would otherwise be suitable having regard to the person's age, experience, and qualifications.
In Carers Allowance, the medical qualifying criteria is as follow :-
A person is regarded as requiring full-time care and attention when:
• they are so incapacitated as to need continual supervision to avoid danger to themselves or
• they need continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout the day in connection with normal bodily functions and
• they are likely to require full-time care and attention for at least 12 months
• if the person you are caring for goes into a nursing home on a full-time basis, payment of the allowance may continue for a period of 12 weeks. A letter from the nursing home confirming date of admittance should be submitted to the department
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
140. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Justice in light of her statement that there exists a serious and genuine, present or foreseeable threat to the security of the State and that such a threat is likely to continue for at least the next 12 months, to outline the details of such threats to the security of the State; to outline the nature of her concerns in this regard; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32895/23]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, I obtained an order of the High Court pursuant to section 3A of the Communications (Retention of Data) Act 2011 (as amended by the Communications (Retention of Data) (Amendment) Act 2022) on 26 June 2023.
The order requires service providers to retain data in all of the categories specified in Schedule 2 of the 2011 Act for a period of 12 months from the date of the making of the order. The data concerned is communications meta data and includes subscriber, traffic and location data. As the Act makes clear it does not apply to the content of any communications.
As set out in the order (as notified to service providers and publicised in the national media last week) the Court granted the order on being satisfied on the basis of information sworn on my behalf, as Minister, that there exists a number of serious and genuine, present and foreseeable threats to the security of the State such that the order is necessary and proportionate for the purpose of safeguarding that security. The sworn information was based on my assessment of the threat taking into account the impact of such retention on the fundamental rights of individuals.
The legislation requires such an assessment to be conducted by the Minister prior to the making of any application and further requires that the Minister must be satisfied that there is a serious and genuine, present or foreseeable threat to the security of the State.
As also required by the legislation, the application was made on an ex parte basis and was heard in camera.
As I hope the Deputy will appreciate, the application and proceedings concern sensitive matters - both the nature of the assessed threat and the manner in which the retention of the data - and ultimately access to that data by the competent bodies - can assist in combatting that threat. For sound reasons of national security it is not, therefore, possible for me to provide further detail on the specific threats grounding the application to the Court.
I can assure the Deputy that the Garda Commissioner and other responsible authorities are fully alert to the threats concerned and are taking any necessary and appropriate action to deal with them.
141. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Justice when a decision will be made on a visa appeal (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32949/23]
View answerThe visa applications referred to by the Deputy were refused by the Visa Office in Manila on 20 April 2023. The reasons for this decision were set out in the refusal letter sent to the applicants at that time. An appeal of this decision was launched on 15 June 2023.
Appeals for applications of this type are processed in the order in which they are received, to be fair to all applicants. While every effort is made to process these applications as soon as possible, processing times will vary having regard to the volume of appeals received, their complexity, the possible need for the visa office to seek further information in relation to certain appeals and the resources available to process them.
All visa applicants are advised that the onus is on them to provide as much information in support of their application as they feel is necessary. Guidelines in this regard are posted on the Immigration Service website. When making an appeal, the applicant should take into account the reasons for refusal listed in the refusal letter. The appeal should include any further information or additional documentation they wish to have considered, and should be sent for the attention of the Visa Appeals Officer, in the relevant Visa Office, where the matter will be considered afresh.
Full consideration will be given to any appeals received on behalf of the applicants, however the onus is on applicants to satisfy the Visa Officer that visas should be granted. Processing times and decisions at the Overseas Visa Offices can be checked at the webpage for the relevant office, details available here: www.irishimmigration.ie/visa-decisions/.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility (inisoireachtasmail@justice.ie), which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
142. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Justice the status of a family reunification application (details supplied); when it is envisaged that same will be completed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32957/23]
View answerThe person referred to by the Deputy created on-line Join Family visa application on 21 March 2023. The supporting documentation and relevant fees were applied on 03 April 2023 in the New Delhi visa office. This visa applications were withdrawn by way of letter on 24 April 2023.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility (inisoireachtasmail@justice.ie), which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
143. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Justice if the text of a Bill in relation to the ratification of the UN Second Optional Protocol has been finalised (details supplied). [32998/23]
View answer144. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Justice when the Second Optional Protocol on the UNCRC will be ratified (details supplied). [33005/23]
View answer145. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Justice if the UN Second Optional Protocol will be ratified before the summer recess of Dáil Éireann; and if not, if she will give a guarantee that the protocol will be ratified before the end of 2023. [33006/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 143, 144 and 145 together.
The Government is firmly committed to ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.
The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Human Trafficking) Bill 2023, which I will publish this month, will remove the final obstacles to ratification of the Protocol. The Bill will deal with the issues relating to extra-territorial jurisdiction to ensure that Ireland is compliant with the requirements of the Protocol. After publication, a date will be sought for the Bill to be debated by the Oireachtas.
Once enacted, the State should be in a position to ratify the Second Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.
