Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 8 June 2016
296. Deputy Jack Chambers asked the Minister for Social Protection why he is continuing to send letters requesting recipients of jobseeker's benefit to use financial institutions instead of using the post office to collect payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14377/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra301. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Social Protection the steps he will take not to allow any further communiques to issue from his Department exhorting jobseekers to use financial institutions rather than post offices to collect their payments (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14544/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra337. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Social Protection if he has consulted with members of the Irish Postmasters' Union regarding his plans to change the payment arrangements for jobseekers who work part-time casually; the number of payments that will be affected by this change; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14814/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra338. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason he is continuing to issue letters to urge jobseekers to use financial institutions rather than post offices to collect their payment (details supplied). [14982/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 296, 301, 337 and 338 together.
My Department provides two main options for payment methods for its customers: payments direct to customer accounts in financial institutions or payments in cash at post offices.
Specifically in respect of cash payments at Post Offices, in 2015 my department made over 38 million such payments in cash at a cost of €54 million. These welfare payments through post offices are across all of the department’s major schemes: state pension, jobseekers, one parent family payments, widow/ers or survivors pensions, carers payments, disability payments and child benefit.
I can assure the Deputy that my department is not undertaking any measures which seek to actively influence customer choice in the manner of payment away from cash payments at the Post Office.
I want to emphasise that for the vast majority of my department’s schemes the department’s customers are given the choice of what payment method they wish to receive their social welfare payment. The vast majority of new customers choose to have payments made directly into their accounts in financial institutions which reflects a societal trend towards payment by electronic funds transfer. For example, 83% of new Child Benefit customers and 70% of new State Pension customers chose this option in 2015.
Many of my department’s customers are in employment. My department’s focus must be on our customers and to this end my department’s policy is to make payments to in-work customers directly to accounts rather than customers being inconvenienced by two separate payment methods.
My department has a cohort of jobseeker customers who are classified as casual jobseekers. These are in-work customers who can claim a jobseeker's payment for 2 to 3 days per week or who work week on/week-off. These customers were paid by cheque each week.
Those customers were paid by cheque due to the changing nature of their work/claiming patterns and the short turn-around time to issue payments. It is important to note that they were not paid via post offices under the department’s existing cash payments contract with An Post.
My department has developed its payment capacity in respect of changing work and claiming patterns and is offering payments direct to accounts in financial institutions for casual Jobseeker customers thereby increasing customer convenience. This is in line with wider departmental policy where the focus is on ensuring that in-work customers are paid by the most convenient method possible.
My department has written to all of these casual jobseekers offering the option of a payment to an account. The vast majority have responded and opted for payment to an account.
If customers wish to continue to be paid by cheque they can make their preference known to their local social welfare office which handles their claim.
The recent “Kerr Report” sets out the challenges that An Post and Postmasters face as they seek to ensure that the post office network remains relevant in the context of the inexorable shift towards electronic payments.
My Department will support the introduction by An Post of a standard bank account through the provision of seed funding to help start the initiative.
My department is engaging as appropriate with the Departments of Communications, Climate Change and Natural Resources and Public, Expenditure and Reform in addressing the recommendations of the report.
