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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 8 Jul 1924

Vol. 8 No. 7

CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. ORAL ANSWERS. - CLAIM FOR UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT.

asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if he can state why unemployment insurance benefit has not been paid to Laurence Mulhall, Skehana, Castlecomer; whether, seeing that Mulhall has been signing at the Labour Exchange, Castlecomer, for five weeks, he will expedite payment without delay.

Laurence Mulhall, of Skehana, Castlecomer, who is by occupation a coal miner, applied for benefit on the 7th April, 1924, and his claim was accepted. On the 14th April he was offered employment at his own trade, namely, as coal miner in the Wolfhill Collieries. As he refused the offer he failed to fulfil one of the statutory conditions for the receipt of unemployment benefit, in that he was not unable to obtain suitable employment, and his claim was accordingly disallowed for a period of six weeks, after which, if he renewed his application for benefit, the case would be reviewed. He appealed to the Court of Referees, which, after considering his case, recommended that the claim should be disallowed. This recommendation was accepted. When Mr. Mulhall renewed his application for benefit on the 2nd July it was possible again to offer him employment at the Wolfhill Collieries, and when his attention was directed to the vacancies for coal miners he stated that he would not proceed with his application for benefit. One of the statutory conditions for the receipt of unemployment benefit laid down in Section 7 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1920, is that the applicant must be unable to obtain suitable employment.

Mr. DOYLE

Is the Minister aware that Laurence Mulhall would have to travel nine miles to the Wolfhill Collieries from where he resides, and that it is almost impossible for him to carry on his duties there as a miner?

I am not aware of that fact myself, but I assume that the Court of Referees had that fact before them, if it was a fact, and they decided that the claim should be disallowed.

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