Written Answers Nos. 228-247
228. Deputy Imelda Munster asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if the feasibility of deepening the port of Waterford has been examined; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53348/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Port of Waterford currently maintains depths at 6.5 metres below datum (i.e. at low water). Hence, at high tide, the port has 10.5 metres in the channel (assuming a 4m tide). This allows the port to accommodate ships with a draft of 9 metres. The port would routinely handle very substantial vessels. In the container handling (Lo-Lo/Unitised) operations the current port depths work well for the type of short sea and feeder vessels that are regarded as appropriate for the current market.
There is some demand for a move to 9.5 metre drafts for a portion of the ports bulk business. This is something the port is currently examining using its recently developed estuary model. This model will allow the port to evaluate the potential to gain greater depth, gauge the capital outlay and wider estuary impact and, most importantly, understand the ongoing cost of maintaining a new depth.
229. Deputy Imelda Munster asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the allocation for the local improvement scheme in each of the years 2008 to 2016, and to date in 2017. [53349/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraDue to the major cutbacks in roads funding resulting from the financial crisis it was necessary for my Department to cease making separate allocations to local authorities in respect of the Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) in 2012. No provision was made for LIS in 2012. Since 2013 local authorities have had the option of using a proportion of their Discretionary Grant for LIS should they wish to do so. The decision on whether to allocate funding for LIS and the management of the allocation process has been a matter for each local authority.
Details of LIS allocations before 2012 are included in the Regional and Local Road Grant Payment booklets which are available in the Dáil Library.
Minister Ring's Department is now taking the lead regarding the LIS having launched a scheme in September 2017 and I understand further funding will be allocated by that Department in 2018.
230. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will request Iarnród Éireann to increase the number of carriages from four to seven on the 9.35 a.m. train from Drogheda to Pearse Station. [53352/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe issues raised are matters for the National Transport Authority (NTA), in conjunction with Iarnród Éireann, and I have forwarded the Deputy's questions to the NTA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within ten working days.
231. Deputy Imelda Munster asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the details of funding allocated to the OPW and Heritage Ireland in each of the years 2010 to 2016, and to date in 2017 to maintain, protect and develop the more than 700 sites and monuments for which they are responsible. [53367/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraResponsibility for the allocation of funding to the OPW and the Heritage Council rests with my colleagues, the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform and the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht respectively. Questions relating to the allocation of funding to the OPW and the Heritage Council are more appropriate to the responsible Ministers.
The Deputy might be interested to know that Fáilte Ireland, which operates under the aegis of my Department, has a strategic partnership in place with the OPW to assist in the refurbishment and enhancement of key visitor attractions.
I have referred the Deputy's question to Fáilte Ireland for direct reply to the Deputy with further information in relation to its strategic partnership arrangement with the OPW. Please contact my private office if you have not received a reply within ten working days.
232. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will review a sports capital grant application (details supplied); and if an appeals process will be in place for unsuccessful applications. [53423/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI can confirm that the organisation referred to by the Deputy applied for a grant under the 2017 Sports Capital Programme.
When the 2017 Programme was advertised, my Department issued a guide to filling out the application form which set out the Department’s minimum requirements that applicants had to meet to be considered for funding.
Applications were deemed invalid primarily for one or more of the following reasons:
- Title/Access requirements of the Sports Capital Programme not satisfied
- Evidence of own funding not provided in prescribed format
- Insufficient own funding
All applicants have now been contacted with details of the outcome of the assessment of their application, including details of why applications were deemed invalid. Relevant organisations have also been informed that they may appeal these decisions if they believe that an error has been made in deeming their application invalid. The deadline for receipt of such appeals is 20 December.
233. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if funding for a project (details supplied) will be provided; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53479/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual road projects is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 in conjunction with the local authorities concerned.
Within its capital budget, the assessment and prioritisation of individual projects is a matter for TII.
Noting the above position, I have referred the Deputy's question to TII for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you don't receive a reply within 10 working days.
234. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to extend the community childcare subvention programme to children that are in receipt of a medical card in cases in which their parent is not in a receipt of a medical card; if not, the reasons therefor; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53320/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe eligibility of the applying parent is determined by their status with the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (DEASP) and certain other factors including medical cards or GP visit cards (for children over 6 only). The amount of the subvention received from my Department is determined by the parent’s DEASP status. It is current practice that when a DEASP payment and a medical card (parent’s or child’s) is received the system should automatically award the highest band due to a parent.
235. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if additional funding will be provided for the provision of a library (details supplied) in County Longford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53368/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraA €22m Libraries Capital Investment Programme is in place for the period 2016-2021 to support the development of priority projects submitted by local authorities. In this regard, the programme includes a priority proposal submitted by Longford County Council in respect of Edgeworthstown library.
My Department is providing a contribution of €1.25m under the capital programme towards the overall cost of the Edgeworthstown development, which is estimated at €2.9m. The matching funding will be provided by Longford County Council, which has responsibility generally for the provision of premises and facilities in the public library service in its capacity as a library authority. There is currently no additional funding available from my Department to further support this project.
236. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will provide the original request for tenders for the JobPath scheme; the number of persons that were part of the process; if the tender was published on etenders; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53273/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraA public procurement process for the provision of the JobPath service was conducted in accordance with EU and Irish procurement rules. On 12 December 2013, my Department published a Prior Information Notice (PIN) and a request for tenders (RFT) notice on both the Government etenders website (www.etenders.gov.ie)and on the website of the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU).
That information was also published and continues to be available on the Department’s own website (www.welfare.ie http://www.welfare.ie/en/Pages/JobPath-RFT.aspx). In addition, the Clarifications document (comprising queries and responses to issues raised by potential tenderers) was published and continues to be available on the Department’s website (http://www.welfare.ie/en/downloads/Clarification-Q-A.pdf).
The procurement process was overseen by a Board that was chaired at Assistant Secretary level and included an independent external member who was formerly a commissioner of a regulatory body. The Board was advised by the Attorney General’s Office and the Chief State Solicitor’s Office as well as the National Development Finance Agency. The outcome of the process and the recommendation to award contracts were reviewed with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the final decision to proceed to contract was made by Government.
All tenders were submitted on a confidential basis. My Department disclosed the names of the successful bidders in its contract award notice which was issued on 9 July 2015. Contracts were awarded on the basis of the most economically advantageous tender based on the following criteria (i) cost, (ii) implementation of services, (iii) delivery of services and (iv) contract management and governance.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
237. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if it is the sponsor or supervisor that has responsibility for the implementation for the daily running of community employment schemes, including the new welfare partners website; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53277/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra238. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the additional training provided to sponsors, community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors in respect of the new welfare partners website; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53278/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra239. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the additional training provided to sponsors, community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors in respect of additional responsibilities such as being responsible for and ascertaining the way in which coaching and mentoring takes place and providing evidence to their community development officer of this being done; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53279/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra241. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if her attention has been drawn to issues in relation to the helpline for community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53281/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 237 to 239, inclusive, and 241 together.
Community Employment (CE) schemes are typically sponsored by groups (known as CE sponsors) wishing to benefit the local community. The CE sponsoring organisations are the legal employers of CE supervisors and assistant supervisors.
My Department is committed to modernising its service delivery and developing systems to support its functions. Responsibility for CE transferred from FÁS to my Department in January 2012 and continued to be delivered on a legacy IT platform. Recently, the CE Programme has been integrated onto my Department’s IT infrastructure. As part of this implementation, a new digital service - Welfare Partners - was developed for organisations who engage with the Department, with a specific focus on providing an online service to CE sponsors and other business partners.
My Department undertook nationwide consultation workshops with key CE scheme sponsors and supervisors during May and early June. As part of these consultations, sponsors were informed that my Department would be implementing a new IT platform/Welfare partners, on a phased basis. All sponsors and supervisors were invited to attend specific information sessions, held nationwide, on how to use the Welfare Partners platform. A dedicated helpdesk was established to provide assistance to sponsor groups with getting started on Welfare Partners. Additional resources have recently been allocated to this helpdesk to assist sponsors and supervisors with any access issues they may have. In addition, sponsors and supervisors have been provided with a Welfare Partners User Manual and further guidance, including a FAQ section, is available on www.welfare.ie. Each scheme also has a dedicated local DEASP Officer who is available to help with any further queries.
The sponsor is responsible, through the supervisor, to ensure that the developmental needs of each CE participant on the scheme are catered for. It is the responsibility of the supervisor to ensure that a profile of each participant’s needs is drawn up through one-to-one consultations, and that this profile is reflected in the Individual Learner Plan (ILP), which must be approved by the Department. Each scheme must designate a member of the Project Management Committee to fulfil the role of the participant development officer. This officer must give full support to the supervisor in the identification, preparation, procurement and delivery of all relevant training, as outlined in the ILP. It is the individual sponsor’s responsibility to meet their contractual obligations and to manage and direct their staff.
Briefings are provided to sponsors, by Departmental staff, as and when required, to assist them in the management and delivery of the CE scheme, specifically in relation to participant development and scheme governance.
The IT enhancements outlined above will have a positive impact for CE sponsors as it will ease the administrative burden and improve operational processing. Customer service is at the centre of my Department’s strategies and business and we will continue to develop and extend the range of online services in line with the service delivery modernisation programme.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
240. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reviews undertaken regarding the community employment scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53280/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraFollowing the publication, earlier this year, of my Department’s Report - An Analysis of the Community Employment Programme - the Government approved a number of changes to the terms and conditions of participation on CE.
The main purpose of the changes is to broaden access to CE to a wider range of people. The changes saw the general qualifying age for CE, for those on the live register, reduced from 25 to 21 years. It is now also easier for previous participants, who have exhausted their CE entitlement, to requalify as participation prior to the year 2007 has been disregarded. While participants aged between 21 and 55 years are entitled to one year on the programme, this can be extended by up to 2 more years if they are engaged in a recognised training or education award that is helping them progress towards employment. All CE participants aged 55 and over will be able to avail of 3 consecutive years on a CE. There will be an overall limit of 6 years from 2007 (or 7 years if on a disability payment).
The Government is very conscious of the value of these schemes, both in terms of work experience and training they provide to assist long-term unemployed people to return to employment, and also the benefit of these schemes to communities across Ireland supporting community services in childcare, health and social care, and local facilities.
I have asked my officials to forward a copy of the CE Report to the Deputy for her consideration.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
242. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her plans to restore annual leave for community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors to 21 days; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53282/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraCommunity Employment (CE) Sponsoring Organisations are the legal employers of CE Supervisors. The Department funds the statutory holiday entitlement for CE Supervisors which, depending on the hours worked, is usually 20 days plus public holidays. There has been no change to the number of annual leave days funded for CE Supervisors since the Department took on responsibility for the CE programme in 2012.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
243. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will address ongoing issues in respect of pension schemes for community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53283/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraCommunity Employment (CE) scheme supervisors are employees of private companies in the community and voluntary sector. The State is not responsible for funding pension arrangements for such employees even where the companies in question are reliant on State funding and the Department was neither party to or bound by the Labour Court Recommendation (LCR19293). It is open to individuals to make provision for a pension by way of PRSA which all employers are obliged to facilitate.
Nevertheless, it should be noted that the issue of CE supervisors’ pension provision is currently being examined by a Community Sector High Level Forum, chaired by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. My Department is represented on this group, as are IMPACT, SIPTU, Pobal and other relevant Government Departments.
The Forum last met on 23 November 2017 and I understand that a paper outlining the costs involved was presented. The unions have agreed to review and revert as soon as possible. Following on from this, a meeting is to be arranged between the trade unions and my colleague, Pascal Donoghue T.D., Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
244. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the position regarding contracts of indefinite duration for community employment supervisors and assistant supervisors; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53284/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department provides funding to Community Employment (CE) Sponsoring Organisations on the basis of an annual contract agreement. The CE Sponsors are the legal employers of CE supervisors and the duration for which the Sponsor contracts with the supervisor is a matter between the two parties. However, the Department provides funding for the duration of the agreement (1 year). It is recommended that such contracts reflect that the position is subject to continued funding by the Department for the scheme.
Supervisors are excluded from Section 9 provisions of the Protection of Employees (fixed Term Work) Act 2003 as they are “employees with a contract of employment which has been concluded within a framework of a specific public or publicly-supported training” under Section 2 of this Act. This means that CE contracts for supervisors cannot be of indefinite duration.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
245. Deputy Tom Neville asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if an application for a fuel allowance by a person (details supplied) has been received; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53316/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraFree fuel allowance is a payment under the National Fuel Scheme to help with the cost of heating your home during the winter months. It is paid to people who are dependent on long-term social welfare payments and who are unable to provide for their own heating needs.
This gentleman has been awarded Free Fuel allowance since 8 October 2014. An application for the change of payment frequency of Fuel Allowance was received by my department on 25 October 2017.
I can confirm that the person in question will receive his first Lump Sum Free Fuel payment on 3 January 2018.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
246. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will reconsider the household benefit package criteria for persons under 66 years of age that are living with another adult with the view to including those in receipt of jobseeker's allowance as a qualified adult; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [53350/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe household benefits package (HHB) comprises the electricity or gas allowance, and the free television licence. My Department will spend approximately €232 million this year on the household benefits package for over 434,000 customers.
The package is generally available to people living in the State, aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test. The package is also available to carers and people with disabilities under the age of 66 who are in receipt of certain welfare type payments. Widows and widowers aged from 60 to 65 whose late spouses had been in receipt of the household benefits package retain that entitlement. Therefore anyone aged under 70 years of age must be in receipt of a qualifying payment from the Department or satisfy a means test in order to qualify for HHB.
They must also satisfy the household composition test meaning they must live alone, or only with certain excepted people, who are:
- A qualified adult (a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant is considered a qualified adult if a person is receiving an allowance for him/her with their payment, or would be receiving a payment for them but for the fact that they are in receipt of a payment in their own right)
- Dependent children under the age of 18, or under the age of 22 if in full-time education (a certificate from the school/college must be supplied for those aged 18 or over)
- A person who is so incapacitated as to require constant care and attention for at least 12 months (medical certification may be required)
- A person(s) who would qualify for the allowance in his/her own right (for example, a person getting a State pension)
- A person who is providing the claimant or someone in their household with constant care and attention, if they are so incapacitated as to require constant care and attention for at least 12 months (medical certification may be required).
Any decision to expand entitlement for receipt of HHB to include those living with another adult in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance would increase the cost of the scheme and would have to be considered in the context of overall budgetary negotiations.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
247. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the adult dependent rate will be applied to the State pension (contributory) in the name of a person (details supplied). [53361/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned was awarded maximum personal rate of state pension (contributory) from 18 February 2017, their 66th birthday. An increase for qualified adult was not awarded at that time as the person’s spouse was in receipt of a social welfare payment at a higher rate in their own right. Written notification of these decisions issued to the claimant on 17 January 2017.
The person concerned re-applied for an increase for qualified adult in respect of their spouse on 11 October 2017, as their spouse who had returned to work had ceased employment. An increase was awarded with effect from 7 October 2017, the day following cessation of their spouse’s employment. The rate of increase awarded is the maximum rate for a qualified adult under age 66, with nil means assessed against them. Written notification of this decision was issued on 8 December 2017. Arrears of increase of qualified adult payment due have been paid.
It is noted that the spouse of the person concerned was in receipt of a social welfare payment in their own right at a higher rate until 2 September 2017, after which they resumed employment until 6 October 2017. If the claimant wishes to submit details of their spouse’s earnings from 3 September to 6 October 2017, entitlement to an increase for that period can be examined.
Due to a change in circumstances, the person concerned may now be eligible for fuel allowance, which is a means tested payment. An application form has issued to the person concerned for completion.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
