Written Answers Nos. 45-54
45. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if there has been a change on the farm assist forms which does not allow expenses to be detailed; if so, the reason such a change took place; if she will clarify that expenses are still to be deducted in the farm assist means test approach; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38569/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraFarm assist is a means-tested income support scheme for farmers. To qualify for the payment, a customer must be a farmer, farming land in the State, aged between 18 and 66 and satisfy a means test.
The means test for Farm Assist takes account of almost every form of income but assesses it in different ways and disregards various amounts. Different rules apply to income from farming and other forms of self-employment, income from certain schemes such as the Rural Environmental Protection Scheme (REPS) and Agri-Environmental Options Scheme (AEOS), income from employment and income from property and capital.
The application form for the Farm Assist scheme asks the customer to supply farm receipts and invoices in date order to confirm income, sales, purchases and expenses covering the last 12 months.
The application and the farm review form do not have space to outline farm outgoings as it would typically not be feasible for customers to list details of entire farm operating costs for the previous 12 month period on an application or review form. A customer can supply details of outgoings separately as an attachment with the completed application and the review form if they so wish.
An examination of farm outgoings is, however, included in the assessment process and the social welfare inspector takes a detailed account of all operating costs when interviewing the customer.
Income and expenditure figures for the preceding year are generally used as an indicator of the expected position in the following year. Details of any exceptional circumstances are also taken into account so as to ensure that the assessment accurately reflects the current situation. This gives the customer a good opportunity to explain both the income generated and the operating costs associated with the farm directly with an inspector.
46. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if she will fully outline the options that are available from her Department for a person (details supplied) in County Mayo who, after ceasing jobseeker's benefit, will not qualify for jobseeker's allowance, given that this person wishes to work but lives in a very rural area where it is hard to get work and given that the person would go on a scheme but will not be entitled to do so as the person will not be in receipt of a qualifying payment for the required length of time; the options open to a person in this case; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38590/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraIt is open to the person in question to contact their Local Employment Services in Achill where they can request a guidance interview with a Case Officer. The Case Officer will advise them on possible options available to them.
47. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the position regarding an application for a carer's allowance by a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38610/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI confirm that the Department received an application for carer’s allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 5 June 2015. The person concerned was refused CA on the grounds that he was not providing full-time care and attention as required.
The person concerned was notified on 2 November 2015 of this decision, the reason for it and of his right of review and appeal.
48. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection her views on correspondence (details supplied) regarding a community employment scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38611/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned is currently working on a CE Scheme and was recruited under the Part Time Job Option. She will have completed 360 weeks (7 years) on CE at her current finish date and, unfortunately, it will not be possible to retain her beyond that date.
An officer from my Department has met with her and explained the eligibility requirements. Her supervisor on the CE Scheme will also be supporting her with the next steps following the completion of her employment on the CE scheme.
She may also wish to contact her local Intreo Office to discuss other options that may be open to her at that time.
49. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the reason a person must be in receipt of a social protection payment for a period of at least one year before the person can be considered for schemes such as the Tús work placement initiative or a community employment scheme; if she will outline if this is encouraging persons who wish to go on one of those schemes to wait on the live register until such time as they are eligible for same; her plans to change this ruling; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38616/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraCommunity Employment (CE) and Tús - the community work placement initiative - are two of a suite of interventions funded and managed by the Department of Social Protection to support long-term social welfare claimants to return to the labour market. The Government’s policy for activation is set out in Pathways to Work and includes measures for the long-term unemployed (on the Live Register for 12 months or more) to re-engage with the labour market. The nature of flows to and from the Live Register do not justify the provision of such interventions for those who have become recently unemployed. Interventions such as CE and Tús should not be considered an alternative to work and entry is restricted so as to ensure that they do not become a factor for signing on the Live Register in the first place.
The Department does not have any plans to change the duration element of the qualification criteria for participation on Tús or CE. It is considered that the existing criteria are adequate to meet the objectives of both programmes set out in Pathways to Work.
50. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the percentage of staff in her Department capable of dealing with the public in the Irish language; if there are training programmes in place for staff to improve their level of working Irish; the provision there is for other minority languages; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38630/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Social Protection is committed to providing a quality customer service in both Irish and English. The Department’s Language Scheme 2015 – 2018 took effect from the 16th March 2015 and will remain in force for a period of three years or until a new scheme has been confirmed by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. This scheme, which sets out the Department’s commitments to customer service in Irish and advises of the availability of services through Irish, was published on the Department’s website www.welfare.ie in March.
Due to the large number of Departmental offices nationwide, it is not possible to have staff members with sufficient fluency to deal with a customer through the medium of Irish available at all times in every location. The Department will be conducting an audit in the near future in order to identify the specific posts and appropriate grades where a bilingual member of staff is required. On completion of the audit the process of filling these positions will commence. In the meantime, arrangements continue to be in place to facilitate customers availing of services through Irish where they wish to do so. As part of a survey conducted in the Department earlier this year, 172 staff (2.6% of total staff) stated that they are willing to provide a service to customers in Irish.
The Department is also committed to the continued development and training of staff to facilitate the provision of services through Irish. A range of supports is available to equip frontline staff with the necessary skills and confidence to deliver a quality customer service in Irish by phone, letter and in person. Supports available include funding for attendance at Irish language training courses; training resources such as language discs and books are made available; and funding through the Department’s Refund of Fees scheme, to encourage staff to pursue Irish Language education outside of work hours.
Language interpretation and document translation services are provided for all languages, including Irish, on request for customers in their engagement with the Department. The interpretation service is provided by way of either a 3-way phone conversation, or a face-to-face service, where an interpreter attends in person.
51. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the position regarding the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry who was in receipt of the family income supplement; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38645/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Family income supplement (FIS) is designed to provide support for employees on low earnings with families.
The person concerned applied for FIS in April 2015 and was awarded a payment with effect from 16 April 2015.
The Department subsequently became aware that the children of the person concerned were not residing full-time with the FIS claimant. A social welfare inspector (SWI) interviewed both parents to try to ascertain with whom the children are normally resident. The SWI reported that the children reside with both parents for 50% of the time and that this custody arrangement has been in place since October 2014 prior to the award of FIS.
Part 6, Section 227 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 (as amended) defines a family for FIS purposes as follows;
“child”, in relation to a family, means a qualified child as defined in section 2(3) who normally resides with that family;
“family” means—
(a) a person who is engaged in remunerative full-time employment as an employee,
(b) where that person is living with or wholly or mainly maintaining—
(i) his or her spouse,
(ii) his or her civil partner, or
(iii) his or her cohabitant,
that spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, and
(c) a child or children;
For the purposes of Part 6, the person with whom a qualified child is regarded as normally residing is determined as follows;
1. Where members of a family as defined in Section 227 (a), (b) and (c) are resident in the same household, the qualified child is regarded as normally residing with the member of the family defined at Section 227(a).
2. Where members of a family as defined in Section 227 (a) and Section 227 (b) are resident in separate households, the qualified child is regarded as normally residing with the person with whom he or she resides for the majority of the time.
3. Notwithstanding no. 2 above, where members of a family as defined in Section 227(a) and 227(b) are resident in separate households and the member of the family as defined in section 227(a) is wholly or mainly supporting the other members of the family as defined in sections 227(b) and 227(c), a qualified child is regarded as normally residing with the member of the family who is wholly or mainly supporting the other members of that family.
This case is a difficult one to determine and it remains under investigation by the Department to try to determine the correct social welfare supports relating to the children and their parents. In the meantime and in accordance with the circumstances as currently notified to the Department, payment of FIS to the person in question will remain stopped. The Department will be in further touch with the person concerned in relation to this matter in an effort to achieve a resolution.
52. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection given that her Department turned down an application for rent supplement from a family (details supplied) in Dublin West, and given her assurance in her reply to Parliamentary Question No. 176 of 20 October 2015 to provide assistance to this family, if she will intervene in the appeal of the decision to avoid this family becoming homeless. [38652/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned is currently in receipt of one parent family payment from this Department. On 24 September 2015 she made an application for rent supplement for her new planned tenancy away from her family home which was commencing on 1 October 2015.
A request for further information in support of her application was issued by the Rents Unit on 8 October 2015. Following receipt of the requested information the person concerned contacted the Designated Person (DP) by telephone on 12 October 2015 in order to ensure that she had provided all the necessary information. The DP advised her at this point that as she had deprived herself of income by voluntarily taking a career break from her employment, this would be taken into account when her application was being assessed.
A calculation of her possible entitlement to rent supplement was made by the DP on 21 October 2015. This was based on the rent payable, her income from her one parent family payment claim, the maintenance payments from her child’s father, and her deprived income based on her gross average weekly wage when in employment. The calculation resulted in her having a nil entitlement to rent supplement and consequently her claim was disallowed. This decision was made under the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, Schedule 3, Part 4, Rule 1(4) – income voluntarily forgone in order to qualify for Supplementary Welfare Allowance.
A letter notifying her that her claim was disallowed and of her right to appeal the decision to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office was sent to the person concerned on 28 October 2015.
53. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection the number of persons in receipt of the back to work family dividend in County Kildare; the criteria for qualification; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38657/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe back to work family dividend (BTWFD) aims to help families to move from a weekly social welfare payment into employment. It gives financial support to people with children who were in receipt of a jobseeker or one-parent family payment and who take up employment, increase their hours of employment or become self-employed.
There were 343 persons in receipt of the back to work family dividend in County Kildare on 31 October 2015. It should be noted that these statistics indicate the number of people in payment through offices located in County Kildare. Catchment areas of many local offices cross county borders. This figure may be different, therefore, from the number of recipients actually residing in County Kildare.
The back to work family dividend provides support for up to two years after a person moves from a weekly social welfare payment into employment. If a person qualifies for the dividend for their first year in employment they will get a weekly payment equivalent to the increases for qualified children they were being paid on their jobseeker or one-parent family payment. This is up to a maximum of 4 children. Half that weekly amount will be paid for the second year in employment. The dividend is additional to any entitlement the family may have under the family income supplement (FIS) scheme.
The qualification criteria for the dividend are that customers must be in receipt of one of the following qualifying payments:
- Jobseeker’s Allowance;
- Jobseeker’s Benefit;
- One-Parent Family Payment; or
- Jobseeker’s Transition Payment (payable to customers who are parenting alone).
Customers in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment must have been in receipt of that payment for at least 12 months in order to be eligible for the dividend. The customer must exit that qualifying payment on or after the 5th January 2015 and they must be in or take up insurable employment/self-employment within four weeks. The customer must also satisfy the Habitual Residence Condition.
