Written Answers Nos. 360-379
360. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage why an individual’s land (details supplied) was delisted and how it can be designated again; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41653/23]
View answerThe land in question has not been de-designated. Of the folio numbers provided, one is fully within both the Middle Shannon Callows SPA (site code: 4096) and the River Shannon Callows SAC (site code: 216).
The vast majority of the second folio is also within in the same SPA and SAC apart from a very small portion which is outside the designated sites (and always has been). There has been no change to the designation status of any of the land mentioned.
361. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if she or officials from her Department will meet with representatives of a group (details supplied) regarding their pensions. [41452/23]
View answerThe Deputy will appreciate that, as a general rule, I am unable to comment or intervene on issues relating to a particular pension scheme or the settlement of legal proceedings.
I am aware that the matters raised by the Deputy have been the subject of legal proceedings and, in that context, l understand that a settlement of the matter was reached. My Department was not a party to these proceedings or settlement and has no knowledge of them.
Given these circumstances, it isn't clear what useful purpose a meeting could serve.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
362. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection her continued plans to address the needs of older people in rural or urban settings in the context of the Budget; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41567/23]
View answerThroughout 2022 and into this year Government has provided a range of unprecedented supports to protect people and families as the cost of living has increased. This includes a €2.2 Billion Social Protection Budget 2023 Package - the largest in the history of the State – which included eight lump sum payments in the last quarter of 2022, and a further package announced in February, providing over €410 million in additional Social Protection supports to households and families.
Key supports for older people included:
• As part of the Government's cost of living measures in Budget 2023, an Autumn Cost of Living Double Payment was paid to Social Protection recipients, including pensioners, in October.
• In November, a €200 Lump Sum Payment was paid to pensioners and people with a disability receiving the Living Alone Allowance, a €500 Cost of Living Payment was paid to people receiving the Carer’s Support Grant and a €500 Cost of Living lump sum was paid to people in receipt of Disability Allowance, Invalidity Pension and Blind Pension. A €400 additional Lump Sum payment was also paid to all households in receipt of the Fuel Allowance Payment.
• In December, a Christmas Bonus Double Payment was paid to 1.3 million Social Protection recipients including pensioners, carers and people with disabilities.
• From January 2023, the maximum rate of core Social Welfare rates was increased by €12. There were proportionate increases for qualified adults and for people getting a reduced rate.
• Also, from January 2023, a new Fuel Allowance means threshold was introduced for people aged 70 years and over. The new means threshold is €500 for a single person and €1,000 for a couple. The weekly means threshold for those aged under 70 was increased by €80 to €200 above the appropriate rate of State Pension (Contributory). Similarly, the allowable means for HHB purposes for those aged between 66-69 not in receipt of a qualifying payment was also increased by €80 to €200 above the appropriate rate of State Pension (Contributory).
• The enhanced electricity credit of €600 is another important Government measure which benefitted all households.
• A further range of measures were announced in February of this year. This package included a €200 lump sum payment which was paid to over 1.3 million recipients in receipt of long-term social welfare payments, including pensioners.
Decisions about Budget 2024 will be made in the coming weeks and Government will continue to prioritise evidence-based measures aimed at supporting the most vulnerable in our society, including older people.
I trust this clarifies matters for the Deputy.
363. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the extent to which she is aware of the ongoing needs of people dependent on fixed salaries or payments in the face of cost-of-living increases; whether she can envisage the situation whereby urgent needs can be met; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41568/23]
View answerThe Government is acutely aware of recent cost of living increases and their impact on low income households and those fixed salaries or payments. In response to the on-going cost-of-living pressures, Budget 2023, saw the largest Social Protection package in the history of the state at a total of €2.1 billion. Some €1.1billion of this package was targeted to provide a wide range of lump-sum payments and provided for a wide range of assistance to alleviate the cost of living pressures.
Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, my Department can make additional needs payments to help meet expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to exceptional and urgent needs payments, and certain supplements to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from the client’s own resources and are deemed to be necessary.
Payments are made at the discretion of the officers administering the scheme, taking into account the requirements of the legislation, and all the relevant circumstances of the case in order to ensure that the payments target those most in need of assistance.
This support is not restricted to those already on a social welfare payment and may also be available to those working on a low income.
Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to Supplementary Welfare Allowance is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office. In addition, applications can be made online via www.mywelfare.ie
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
364. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for Social Protection if the special needs school transport grant is counted as means or income for carers allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41006/23]
View answerCarer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care.
Means are any income belonging to the carer and their spouse / civil partner / cohabitant, including property (except their own home) or an asset that could bring in money or provide them with an income (for example, occupational pensions, or pensions or benefits from another country).
I can confirm that any payments from the Special Transport Grant made by the Minister for Education under the School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs are excluded from the CA means assessment.
Further information in relation the CA means assessment can be found on the Department website www.gov.ie under the Operational Guidelines Means Assessment www.gov.ie/en/publication/11f23e-means-assessment-guidelines/
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
365. Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin asked the Minister for Social Protection if there is any way for a school (details supplied) to be added to the hot school meals programme for primary schools for this year. [41019/23]
View answerThe School Meals Programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to some 1,700 schools and organisations benefitting 300,000 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. In February, the Government approved an additional €14.5m to allow access to the Hot School Meals scheme for all remaining DEIS schools from September 2023.
Entry to the School Meals Scheme has been confined to DEIS schools in addition to schools identified by the Department of Education as having levels of concentrated disadvantage meaning that their students would benefit from access to the School Meals Programme. The school in question is a non DEIS school with no access to school meals programme funding.
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 1,100. 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, as part of significant plans to extend the Hot School Meals programme, all remaining primary schools were contacted and requested to submit an expression of interest form if their school is interested in commencing the provision of hot school meals. Expressions of interest forms were received from over 900 non DEIS schools in respect of 150,000 children. I understand that an expression of interest has just been received from the school referred to by the Deputy.
From 2024, I intend commencing the roll-out of Hot School Meals to all remaining primary schools on a phased basis.
I trust this clarifies the matter.
366. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Social Protection if the State pension (contributory) will be approved immediately for a person (details supplied). [41059/23]
View answerThe person concerned reached pension age on 23 June 2023. State Pension (Contributory) was awarded with effect from 23 June 2023 at the maximum weekly rate. The decision issued on 19 September 2023.
The first payment will issue to their nominated financial institution on 22 September 2023. This payment will also include arrears due for the period 23 June 2023 to 21 September 2023.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
367. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Social Protection whether her Department conducts any research or compiles estimates of the number of people who are entitled to payments under schemes administered by her Department but who have not applied for them; if so, the total savings to the State as a result; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41085/23]
View answerI wish to inform the Deputy that the Department of Social Protection has not conducted any research or compiled estimates of the number of people who are entitled to payments under schemes administered by the Department, but who have not applied for them.
368. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Social Protection whether data is collected on rates of child poverty, particularly in areas of deprivation, as defined by Pobal, by her Department or any relevant bodies; the methods used; the subsets under which this data is collected; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41135/23]
View answerThe Central Statistics Office (CSO) Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) is the official source of poverty statistics for Ireland. The most recent survey results in relation to the 2022 survey were published by the CSO on 22 February 2023. Due to the sample sizes involved, poverty data is only available at regional level. However, child poverty data at regional level is not readily available on the CSO website. The issue of producing poverty statistics is a matter for the CSO.
The latest CSO data shows that the consistent poverty rate for children has increased from 5.2% in 2021 to 7.5% in 2022, similar to the rate in 2020 (7.2%). While it is disappointing to see a break in the downward trend in the consistent poverty rate for children, it is important to note that the SILC 2022 data relates to income in the calendar year 2021 and as such does not take account of the significant package of measures introduced under Budget 2022 or Budget 2023 and the range of cost of living measures since 2021, which includes:
- A €17 increase in weekly rates of payments.
- Increases to Qualified Child Payments, bringing rates to €50 per week for children aged 12 and over, and €42 for children under the age of 12.
- Increases in the Working Family Payment thresholds in Budgets 2022 and 2023, as well as a €500 cost of living lump sum payment to all recipients last November.
- once-off €100 lump sum payment in respect of every child for whom Child Benefit is paid, bringing the value of this support to €240 per child for the month of June.
- once-off additional €100 payment this year in respect of each child for whom the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is paid.
- Extension of the Hot School Meals programme to all DEIS primary schools and special schools from this month, benefiting 64,500 children.
Delivery of these supports reflects the Government’s continuing commitment to supporting Irish families, particularly those most in need. In order to drive action in this area the Government established a new Child Poverty and Wellbeing unit in the Department of the Taoiseach earlier this year. In addition, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth is leading on the development of Young Ireland: The National Policy Framework for Children and Young People 2023 – 2028, a whole of Government initiative that will serve as a successor framework to Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures. The Department of Social Protection will also hold a public consultation on the development of a new national Child Poverty target before the end of the year.
The Government will continue to use the SILC data to inform policy and budgetary measures as it has done before in increasing qualified child, lone parent, working family, living alone and fuel allowance payments, targeted at people most at risk of poverty. In addition a revised HP deprivation index, generated by POBAL, will be published in the near future. The updated HP Deprivation Index, when available, will be considered by my Department to help inform future measures to address child poverty.
369. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Social Protection whether it is possible to set up a trust for a person with a severe disability, without undermining their eligibility for disability allowance, which normally assesses a nominal weekly means to all capital exceeding €50,000. [41173/23]
View answerDisability allowance (DA) is a means-tested payment for people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66. The applicant must be suffering from an injury, disease, congenital deformity or physical or mental illness or defect which has lasted for one year or is expected to last for one year and, as a result of which, they are substantially restricted in undertaking work which would otherwise be suitable having regard to the person’s age, experience and qualifications. The person must also satisfy a means test and be habitually resident in the State.
If capital held by the person concerned is lodged into their own bank account, the money is assessed in accordance with the means guidelines and the person may receive a reduced rate of DA.
Where money is lodged into a Trust Fund, the nature of the Trust Fund will determine how the capital is dealt with when carrying out an assessment of the means of the person concerned for the purposes of DA.
Where a Trust Fund is owned by the person concerned, then money held in the fund is regarded as property owned and is therefore assessed as capital and the standard capital means test applies. However, periodic payments of lumps sums out of the fund to the person concerned are not assessable as means.
In the case of a Life Interest Trust Fund, income from the fund is assessed as means. Periodic payments or cash income that the person concerned may reasonably expect to receive from the fund during a particular year is assessable as means. The terms of the Trust and the manner in which it is administered will determine what income the person concerned may reasonably expect to receive.
Where the person concerned receives compensation and this is lodged to a Discretionary Trust, the manner of the administration of the Trust Fund will determine how the capital is assessed in any means assessment. Discretionary Trust Funds are administered by the trustee(s) who is given the authority to apply the income from the capital for the benefit of the person concerned as they see fit. The person concerned does not own the capital or have a life interest in it. The effect on the means of the person concerned for DA purposes depends on how the trust is administered.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
370. Deputy John Paul Phelan asked the Minister for Social Protection the total number of people who have been in receipt of jobseeker's allowance or jobseeker's benefit continuously since December 2019; and to state the ages and geographical locations of these recipients. [41186/23]
View answerFor the week ending 17th September 2023, there were 26,733 people on the Live Register in receipt of Jobseeker's Allowance or Jobseeker's Benefit with a commencement date prior to 1 January 2020. Of these 5,623 are casual jobseekers.
These claims are inclusive of periods where pay may have been suspended for a recipient but their claim remained open. For example, casual jobseekers who subsequently received PUP payments while their jobseeker claim remained valid and open are included in the recipient figure.
Table 1: Continuous Jobseeker's Allowance or Jobseeker's Benefit claims since 2019, by age
|
Age |
Recipients |
|
Under 25 |
631 |
|
25-29 |
1,892 |
|
30-34 |
3,013 |
|
35-39 |
3,354 |
|
40-44 |
3,577 |
|
44-49 |
3,514 |
|
50-54 |
3,708 |
|
54-59 |
3,379 |
|
60+ |
3,665 |
|
Total |
26,733 |
Table 2: Continuous Jobseeker's Allowance or Jobseeker's Benefit claims since 2019, by county
|
County |
Recipients |
|
Carlow |
511 |
|
Cavan |
601 |
|
Clare |
743 |
|
Cork |
1,570 |
|
Donegal |
1,706 |
|
Dublin |
6,680 |
|
Galway |
1,354 |
|
Kerry |
842 |
|
Kildare |
853 |
|
Kilkenny |
553 |
|
Laois |
561 |
|
Leitrim |
225 |
|
Limerick |
1,097 |
|
Longford |
423 |
|
Louth |
1,194 |
|
Mayo |
923 |
|
Meath |
781 |
|
Monaghan |
325 |
|
Offaly |
497 |
|
Roscommon |
368 |
|
Sligo |
428 |
|
Tipperary |
837 |
|
Waterford |
853 |
|
Westmeath |
691 |
|
Wexford |
1,366 |
|
Wicklow |
717 |
|
Unknown |
34 |
|
Total |
26,733 |
371. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) was refused a widow's pension; if her application will be reviewed with a view to granting payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41206/23]
View answerTo qualify for Widow's, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) Pension, a person must:
• be a widow, widower or surviving civil partner;
• satisfy certain social insurance conditions; and
• not cohabit with another person as a couple.
The person concerned was refused a Widow's, Widower's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) Pension. Following an investigation into the matter, it is believed she is cohabiting. The person concerned has appealed the decision to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office, who will notify her of their decision in due course. The person concerned can also request a review of the deciding officer's decision, concurrent to the appeals process, by sending any further documentary evidence they may have to the claim processing team, as outlined on their decision letter.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
372. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Social Protection her views with regard to the blind pension (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41236/23]
View answerMy Department provides a number of income supports for those unable to work due to illness or disability. These include insurance-based schemes, based on Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contributions, and means-tested social assistance schemes.
The primary social assistance scheme for people who are blind or visually impaired is the Blind Pension, which is a means-tested payment payable to those aged between 18 and 66. Means-testing of Blind Pension is a statutory requirement under social welfare legislation. The means test plays a critical role in determining if an income need arises as a consequence of a particular contingency - be that illness, caring, unemployment or disability.
Applying a means-test not only ensures that the recipient has an income need but also that scarce resources are targeted. The means assessment reflects the fact that there is an expectation that people with reasonable amounts of income or capital are in a position to use these resources to support themselves, so that social welfare expenditure can be directed towards those who need it most.
By its nature, the means test takes account of the income a person or couple has in terms of cash, property - other than the family home - and capital. It does not take account of a person’s expenditure. In line with most social assistance payments, deductions permitted for Blind Pension include PRSI, union dues and pension contributions.
My Department is committed to consulting on proposals to reform long-term disabilities payments. In this regard, I launched a Green Paper last week at a meeting with stakeholders and a public consultation to reform disability payments in Ireland. The consultation period will run until 15 December and details are available www.gov.ie/disabilitypaymentsreform
I trust that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
373. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Social Protection her plans to increase statutory maternity and paternity benefit and to increase the length of paid leave available to both parents, in line with recommendations of the Citizen's Assembly on Gender Equality and Joint Committee on Gender Equality; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41248/23]
View answerThe Government has committed to the continued support of working parents to achieve a better work-life balance. The question of extending the duration of Maternity and Paternity Leave would, in the first instance, be a matter for consideration by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth who has policy and legal responsibility for Maternity and Paternity Leave. My Department has responsibility for the payment of any associated benefit.
As part of Budget 2023 the standard rate of Maternity and Paternity Benefit increased by €12 to €262 per week from January 2023. Last December I published a public consultation document or "Strawman" on Pay-Related Benefit for Jobseekers. While the Strawman primarily focuses on jobseekers supports, feedback received as part of the public consultation will also help to inform the consideration of potential changes to other short-term income supports, such as Maternity Benefit.
The Parent’s Leave and Benefit Act 2019 introduced two weeks of paid Parents' Leave for each parent to be taken in the first year after the birth or adoptive placement of a child. In April 2021, an additional three weeks of paid Parents' Leave was made available to each qualifying parent. The period in which the leave can be taken has also been extended to the first two years after the birth or adoptive placement of a child.
Furthermore, in July 2022 Parent's Leave and Benefit was increased from five weeks to seven weeks. In line with the EU Work-Life Balance Directive, Parent’s Leave and Benefit is required to increase by an additional two weeks to nine weeks by August 2024.
When the current durations of Maternity, Paternity and Parent’s Leave are combined this adds to 42 weeks of paid leave for a two-parent family. In addition, 16 weeks of unpaid Maternity Leave is available. Over time, Parent's Leave and Benefit will increase to nine weeks for each parent, this will bring paid leave in Ireland up to a combined 46 weeks for a two-parent family by 2024.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
374. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Social Protection the assistance that is available in the form of financial supports or grants for women who wish to return to the workforce, having been out of the workforce for a prolonged period of time to rear their young children; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41250/23]
View answerThe labour market recovery since the lifting of pandemic restrictions has seen employment levels rise to their highest on record in recent months. Latest CSO figures show 2.64 million people in employment in the second quarter of this year. The number of females in the labour force increased by 4.8% (+60,600) in the year to Q2, 2023 (compared to a 2.0% increase in the number of males). The latest CSO figures for Q2, 2023 show the highest female participation rates since records began, at 61%.
Pathways to Work, the national employment services strategy launched during the pandemic in July 2021. The strategy aimed to decrease employment brought about by the pandemic, and to support those distant from the labour market, including “returners” to the workforce and lone parents. Specifically, the strategy seeks to increase the lone parent employment rate from 63% to the EU average of 74%. My Department administers a number of schemes which encourage women’s participation in and return to the workforce, including several supports targeted at parents.
• The Back to Work Family Dividend scheme aims to help families move from social welfare into employment. It gives financial support to people with qualified children who are in or take up employment or self-employment and as a result stop claiming a jobseeker's payment or a one-parent family payment. Where a person qualifies, they receive a weekly payment for up to two years. In the first year, this will be paid at the equivalent of any Increases for Qualified Children that were payable on their Jobseeker’s or One-Parent Family Payment (up to a maximum of 4 children). Half that amount is paid weekly for the second year. In this regard, the currently weekly qualified child rate for a child under the age of 12 is €42 per week and €50 for a child aged 12 and over. At the end of 2022, some 2,029 recipients of the scheme were women (75%).
• The Training Support Grant provides quick access to short-term training to support jobseekers access to work opportunities. The grant is used to meet a skills gap or training need where this cannot be provided by a state provider within a reasonable time, and in cases where an intervention is needed to access a work opportunity. The intervention identified is linked to both the activation needs of the jobseeker and labour market conditions. Applications for the grant are made to an Employment Personal Adviser at the local Intreo office and are considered as part of the person’s Personal Progression Plan. In the year to end August, there have been some 4,300 grants completed. 21% of the completed grants have been for women applicants.
• The Work Placement Experience Programme (WPEP) is a funded work placement scheme to provide work experience for jobseekers who have been unemployed for more than six months. The scheme aims to keep jobseekers close to the labour market and prevent scarring effects of long-term unemployment. The WPEP is also available to people who are on a One Parent Family Payment, Jobseekers Transition Payment or Disability Allowance. To date, of the 813 placements approved, 427 (52.5%) are female.
• The JobsPlus incentive is designed to encourage employers and businesses to focus their recruitment efforts on those who have been out of work for long periods. It provides a direct monthly financial incentive to employers over two years, with two levels of grant payable - €7,500 or €10,000 provided that the employment is maintained. 32% of this scheme’s 1,196 participants are women.
In addition, the Employer Relations Division of my Department delivers recruitment events, career fairs and information events which promote jobseeker supports to those returning to the labour market. These events include larger campaigns such as the Intreo Work and Skills campaigns, which target those who are unemployed, under-employed and inactive having been out of the workforce for a longer period of time. The division also delivers employer roadshows over the year in collaboration with the local Education and Training Boards (ETBs) and Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs). These roadshows highlight the range of supports and services available to employers including presentations on benefits of hiring returners to the workforce.
The Return-to-Work campaign which ran from 26th September to 7th October 2022, hosted 25 in-person events across the country with an overall attendance of 5,322 jobseekers and 98 employers. Another Work and Skills campaign is due to take place in October 2023 when recruitment and training fairs will take place nationwide.
375. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a travel allowance paid in respect of travel for dialysis treatment is counted as means in an assessment for disability allowance; the plans she has, if any, to review this situation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41311/23]
View answerThe system of social assistance supports provides payments based on an income need. The means test plays a critical role in determining whether or not an income need arises as a consequence of a particular contingency – such as disability, unemployment or caring. This ensures that the recipient has a verifiable income need and that resources are targeted to those who need them most.
By its nature, the means test takes account of the income a person or couple has in terms of cash, property - other than the family home - and capital. It does not take account of a person’s expenditure. In line with most social assistance payments, deductions permitted for disability allowance include PRSI, union dues and superannuation (pension contributions).
A wide range of disregards are provided as part of the Means Rules set out in Schedule 3 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act (2005, as amended) and also under secondary legislation under the Act.
My officials will be happy to engage with the Deputy's office to ascertain the precise nature and source of the travel allowance paid in the circumstance referred to in this parliamentary question, investigate the consequent treatment of such an allowance in terms of the Department's means rules and respond to the Deputy in writing.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
376. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Social Protection how much it would cost to increase the rate of jobseeker's benefit by €80 per week; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41376/23]
View answer377. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Social Protection how much of an extra cost to the Exchequer would have been incurred if each claimant of jobseeker's benefit in 2022 and to date in 2023 received an increase of €80 per week for the duration of their payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41377/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 376 and 377 together.
The estimated full year cost of increasing Jobseekers Benefit by €80 per week is €153.7 million.
It should be noted that this cost is subject to change in the context of labour market changes, emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients for 2024.
378. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Social Protection the current total number of recipients of child benefit payments. [41378/23]
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.
As of 31/08/2023, there were 648,564 recipients of Child Benefit payments in respect of 1,211,902 children.
I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
379. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Social Protection the current total amount of jobseeker's allowance claimants; how many of those are on the reduced rate of €129.70 on account of being aged 18-24 and not living independently; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41379/23]
View answerJobseeker's Allowance is a payment to people who are unemployed. It is a means-tested payment, so your income must be below a certain amount to get Jobseeker's Allowance.
As at 15th September, there were 125,481 recipients of Jobseeker's Allowance. Of these, 9,905 were aged 18 to 24 and on the reduced rate of €129.70 per week.
