Written Answers Nos. 516-534
516. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the number or percentage of employees in his Department and in the agencies under his aegis with intellectual disabilities; his plans to increase this number to promote and support the employment of persons with intellectual disabilities as outlined in the Disability Act 2005; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17493/19]
Amharc ar fhreagra517. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if his Department and the agencies under his aegis track the numbers of employees they have with an intellectual disability; his plans to do so in order to help set targets and increase workplace opportunities for those with intellectual disabilities such as those outlined in the national disability inclusion strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17510/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 516 and 517 together.
My Department was established on 19 July 2017 and is strongly committed to the development and implementation of measures to promote and support the employment of individuals with disabilities. The Department supports the best practice principles in this area, as set out in the 'Code of Practice for the employment of people with disability in the Civil Service'.
The Department has a Disability Liaison Officer in place whose role is to:
- Act as the point of contact for Civil Servants with disabilities, their managers and HR Units;
- Assist and support Civil Servants with disabilities, in confidence, and their line managers by providing necessary information, appropriate contacts, guidance, suggestions and advice;
- Assist in the implementation of best Human Resource practices in line with equality legislation
- Facilitate increased awareness of disability throughout the organization;
- Attend meetings of the Civil Service Disability Liaison Officers Network.
Public sector bodies are obliged under the Disability Act 2005:
- To promote and support the employment of people with disabilities;
- To ensure, where practicable, that 3% of all staff employed are people with disabilities;
- To report every year on the number and percentage of employees with disabilities.
In April 2018, the Department undertook its first survey of staff, including a survey of its four agencies, as required by the National Disability Authority (NDA). This survey related to staff employed in the Department and its agencies in 2017.
Table A outlines the percentage of staff in the Department of Rural and Community Development, that declared a disability in 2017.
Table A
|
Department of Rural Community Development |
Number of Employees (at time of survey) |
Percentage of Employees with Disabilities |
|
|
115 |
7% |
The four agencies under the aegis of the Department were surveyed, with the results outlined in the table.
|
Public Body |
Number of Employees |
Percentage of Employees with Disabilities |
|
Western Development Commission |
14 |
0% |
|
Irish Water Safety |
7 |
0% |
|
Charities Regulator Authority |
47 |
2.1% |
|
Pobal ** |
390 |
1.2% |
** While Pobal is an agency of the Department, the Department is not required to submit returns for it to the NDA.
In 2017, the Department participated in the Willing Able and Mentoring (WAM) Scheme, run by AHEAD (Association for Higher Education Access & Disability) by hiring a graduate under this Programme for a six month placement. The Department received an award for its participation in this Programme in 2017. In 2018 the Department employed two further participants under this Scheme.
The Department is currently undertaking its 2018 annual survey on the numbers of employees with disabilities. The results will be returned to the NDA by June 30th, 2019.
518. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development if his Department has an application on hand from Galway County Council to develop a walking route (details supplied); if so, the status of this application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17569/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department does not appear to have received an application in respect of the project referred to by the Deputy. A project of this nature could potentially be eligible for support under the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme which provides funding for the development of new outdoor recreational infrastructure or the necessary maintenance, enhancement or promotion of existing outdoor recreational infrastructure in Ireland.
I launched the 2019 Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme on 29 March 2019, with a closing date for applications of 31 May 2019.
The scheme provides funding under three separate measures, with grants of up to €500,000 available for projects of different scale.
Since I introduced the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme in 2016, I have approved almost 600 projects for funding of over €41 million under the scheme. This investment has funded walkways, blueways, trails and other outdoor infrastructural projects around the country.
519. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the funding open to schools (details supplied); his plans to allocate additional funds to local authorities for such schools; if he plans changes to CLÁR on same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17719/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe primary objective of the CLÁR Programme is to support small scale infrastructural projects in designated rural areas that have experienced significant levels of depopulation, with the aim of encouraging people to continue to live and work in those areas.
The CLÁR areas are determined on the basis of population decline using Census data at Electoral Division level.
I launched the 2019 CLÁR programme on 28th February last, with a closing date of 25th April. Calls for proposals were invited under the following measures:
Measure 1: Support for Schools/Community Safety Measures
Measure 2: Play Areas (including MUGAs)
Measure 3: 3(a) First Response Support Measure
3(b) Support for Mobility and Cancer Care Transport.
3(c) Sensory Gardens
Funding under Measure 1 & 2 is only available to those schools that are located within CLÁR areas. Outside of these areas, the Department of Education or the Local Authority might be best placed to provide funding for the schools referred to by the Deputy.
I initiated a review of the CLÁR programme late last year. This review will examine CLÁR areas by reference to the 2016 Census of Population data and will also help to determine the most appropriate measures to be included in CLÁR programmes in 2020 and beyond. I anticipate that this review will be completed during 2019.
520. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development the reason for the significant drop in funding to the community enhancement programme for 2019, with €4.5 million being allocated compared to €13 million in 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17851/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn 2018, I launched the Community Enhancement Programme with initial funding of €4.5m.
The programme helps community groups to improve facilities in their area. It supports a range of investment in all areas of communities, such as childcare facilities, playgrounds, recreational facilities, sports grounds, landscaping projects, and supports for the elderly.
In 2018, there was a huge level of interest in the programme right across the country following its launch. So I was delighted to be in a position to allocate additional once-off funding to the programme later in the year and the final amount allocated was €13 million. This included €0.5 million that was ring-fenced for Men's Sheds. Over 3,000 projects across the country were funded, all of them targeted at enhancing facilities in disadvantaged communities.
In March of this year, I launched the 2019 programme with funding of €4.5m, the same amount that was initially provided in 2018. If savings elsewhere in the Department are identified as the year progresses, I will consider additional funding for the Community Enhancement Programme.
521. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the case of a person (details supplied) will be examined and the matter expedited; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17223/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned applied for Illness Benefit in May 2018 and was informed that he did not qualify for payment.
One of the qualifying conditions for Illness Benefit is that a person must have 39 weeks of PRSI contributions paid or credited in the relevant tax year, of which 13 must be paid contributions at class A, E or H.
The person concerned is currently paying class D contributions, which is not a qualifying class of contribution for Illness Benefit and therefore he does not satisfy this contribution condition.
A letter issued to him on the 8th August 2018 explaining the position.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
522. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of a PPS number for a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17240/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned entered the State and details regarding her identity need to be clarified.
She agreed in February last to provide her new certificate of residence to the local Intreo Centre in order to clarify some of her personal details but, to date, she has not done so.
Once this has been presented, her application will be further processed.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
523. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason persons born before 1 September 1946 are not being reviewed for the homemakers scheme (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17241/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraA policy to introduce the Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to pensions calculation was adopted by Government in the National Pensions Framework in 2010, as was the decision to base the entitlements of all new pensioners on this approach from around 2020.
In January 2018, I announced the Government Decision to introduce a new interim Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to the calculation of State Pension that will allow pensioners who reached pension age from September 2012 (i.e., those born on or after 1 September 1946), to have their pension entitlement calculated by an interim “Total Contributions Approach” (TCA) which will include up to 20 years of new HomeCaring Periods. This approach is expected to significantly benefit many people, particularly women, whose work history includes an extended period of time outside the paid workplace, while raising families or in a caring role. The TCA will ensure that the totality of a person’s social insurance contributions - as opposed to the timing of them - determines their final pension outcome. The HomeCaring Periods can be claimed for any year in which they occurred - they are not limited to years since 1994.
People whose pensions were decided under the 2000-2012 ratebands were subject to a significantly more generous regime than those who qualified before or afterwards, as a Yearly Average of only 20 contributions per year (out of a maximum of 52) could attract a 98% pension. The effect of those changes, as it impacted upon those new pensioners since 2012, will be familiar to anyone who followed the debate on this matter over the last 6 years. If pre-2012 pensioners were also allowed avail of HomeCaring Credits, their arrangements, as a group, would continue to be significantly more generous than those of post-2012 pensioners. There would also be a very significant cost which would be expected to be of the order of several hundred millions of euros each year. This in turn could significantly impact funds for future pension increases with consequential implications for pensioner poverty.
For those with insufficient contributions to meet the requirements for a State pension (contributory), they may qualify for a means tested State pension (non-contributory), the maximum personal rate for which is €237 (over 95% of the maximum rate of the contributory pension). This rate of payment does not include rent allowance, household benefits or fuel allowance. Alternatively, if their spouse is a State pensioner and they have significant household means, their most beneficial payment may be an Increase for a Qualified Adult, based on their personal means, and amounting up to 90% of a full contributory pension.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
524. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the case of a person (details supplied) will be examined; the reason the person must repay an amount; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17254/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraA review of this gentleman's disability allowance (DA) was carried out and it was established that the person concerned had been absent from the state on a number of occasions. This resulted in the disallowance of his DA for these periods and in an overpayment being raised against him.
Except in certain exceptional circumstances, disability allowance (DA) is not payable for any period in respect of which the claimant is resident outside of the state. On an administrative basis, DA allows for two weeks holiday entitlement in any twelve month period. In all circumstances, DA recipients must inform the department that they are intending to leave the state in advance of travel. No such notification was received from the person concerned.
On 12 March 2019, he was notified of this decision which included his right to a review of this decision or to appeal it to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office. No request was received in this case.
The Department is obliged to recoup any debt owing to it and the method of recovery, and negotiations regarding the amount recoverable, are dealt with under the Department’s code of practice.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
525. Deputy Tony McLoughlin asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if potential changes to an index system for determining pension rises will apply only to State pensions and not private or personal pensions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17271/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Roadmap for Pensions Reform, published last year, commits the Government to examine and develop proposals to set a formal benchmark target of average earnings for the state pension (contributory), and to institute a process whereby future changes in state pension rates of payment are explicitly linked to changes in consumer prices and average wages.
My Department is currently considering options to implement this commitment, by examining previous studies on benchmarking and indexation, international experience and examination of a range of potential benchmarks and indices.
Private and personal pensions are a matter for the individuals concerned, and their benefits are generally a direct result of the return on investments made by the pension fund concerned, rather than decisions made by the Government in the context of the annual Budget. My Department has no role in setting the rates at which such pensions are paid.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
526. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the correct level of jobseeker's allowance in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17288/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned submitted an application for jobseeker's allowance with effect from 11/3/19.
The person concerned was disqualified from payment for a period of 9 weeks by a Deciding Officer, in accordance with section 147(4)(b) of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 as amended, as he was deemed to have refused employment.
When jobseeker's allowance is re-instated on week commencing 13/5/19, the person concerned will be entitled to a weekly payment outlined as follows:
|
€ |
|
|
Personal rate |
€203.00 |
|
Increase for a Qualified Adult |
€134.70 |
|
Increase for 4 Qualified Children |
€145.00 |
|
Sub-total |
€482.70 |
|
Less weekly means |
(€ 82.00) |
|
Total weekly jobseeker's allowance payment |
€400.70 |
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
527. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason payment of illness benefit ceased after 12 months for a person (details supplied); when payment will be reinstated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17290/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraIllness Benefit is paid for a maximum of 1 year if a person has a total of between 104 and 259 reckonable social insurance contributions paid or for a maximum 2 years if a person has a total of 260 or more reckonable social insurance contributions paid.
The entitlement of the person concerned to Illness Benefit exhausted on the 29th March 2019 as she had received a full year of Illness Benefit payment and her social insurance record indicated that she had 251 contributions paid.
However, the Department reviewed her entitlement and based on additional contributions from her 2018 social insurance record it was determined that as she now has over 260 contributions she is entitled to an Illness Benefit payment for another year as long as she continues to satisfy the medical criteria for the scheme.
The person concerned is currently paid Illness Benefit up to date and is medically certified until the 30th April 2019.
I trust this clarifies matters for the Deputy.
528. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the bereavement grant will be reinstated. [17332/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraDuring the economic downturn, my Department focused on protecting primary social welfare rates. In recent years, as the economy has been recovering, the Government's priority has been to concentrate resources in improving the core rates of these payments, particularly for pensioners, resulting in considerable increases in these rates.
The Bereavement Grant was a payment of €850 made where the deceased or his / her surviving partner was an insured contributor to the social insurance fund. Any decision to reinstate it would have to be considered in the context of overall budgetary negotiations.
It’s worth noting that there are a range of supports available for people following bereavement which provide more significant support than the grant. These include weekly paid widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner’s (contributory and non-contributory) pensions, which are based on contributions or a means test, and a once-off widowed or surviving civil partner grant of €6,000 where there is a dependent child. A number of social welfare payments, including State pension, continue in payment for six weeks following a death. In Budget 2016, the Government increased the payment after death period to 12 weeks for carer’s allowance. Guardian payments are available where someone cares for an orphaned child. A special funeral grant of €850 is paid where a person dies because of an accident at work or occupational disease.
Under the Supplementary Allowance scheme, the Department may make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet from their weekly income, which may include help with funeral and burial expenses. This is a more targeted and efficient manner of assisting people with bereavement expenses. In 2018 ENPs were made in respect of 2,812 funerals at a cost of €5.317m and 69 burial expenses at a cost of €140,674.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
529. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of a domiciliary care allowance application by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17334/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn application for domiciliary care allowance was received from the person concerned on the 11th October 2018. The application was not allowed as the child was not considered to satisfy the qualifying conditions for the allowance. A letter issued on the 4th January 2019 setting out the decision of the deciding officer to refuse the allowance.
An appeal was registered by the Social Welfare Appeals Office on the 28th January 2019. As part of the appeals process, the application was re-examined by a deciding officer and the person concerned was notified on the 29th March 2019 that the review was unsuccessful. An appeal submission was prepared and forwarded to the Social Welfare Appeals on the 2nd April 2019 for consideration by an Appeals Officer. The Social Welfare Appeals Office will contact the person concerned directly about the outcome of the appeal.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
530. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of a domiciliary care allowance application by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17335/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn application for domiciliary care allowance was received from the person concerned on the 30th July 2018. The application was not allowed as the child was not considered to satisfy the qualifying conditions for the allowance. A letter issued on the 22nd November 2018 setting out the decision of the deciding officer to refuse the allowance.
An appeal was registered by the Social Welfare Appeals Office on the 2nd January 2019. As part of the appeals process, the application was re-examined by a deciding officer and the person concerned was notified on the 3rd April 2019 that the review was unsuccessful. An appeal submission was prepared and forwarded to the Social Welfare Appeals Office on the 3rd April 2019 for consideration by an Appeals Officer. The Social Welfare Appeals Office will contact the person concerned directly about the outcome of the appeal.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
531. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of a domiciliary care allowance application by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17336/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn application for domiciliary care allowance was received from the person concerned on the 11th October 2018. The application was not allowed as the child was not considered to satisfy the qualifying conditions for the allowance. A letter issued on the 4th January 2019 setting out the decision of the deciding officer to refuse the allowance.
An appeal was registered by the Social Welfare Appeals Office on the 28th January 2019. As part of the appeals process, the application was re-examined by a deciding officer and the person concerned was notified on the 29th March 2019 that the review was unsuccessful. An appeal submission was prepared and forwarded to the Social Welfare Appeals on the 2nd April 2019 for consideration by an Appeals Officer. The Social Welfare Appeals Office will contact the person concerned directly about the outcome of the appeal.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
532. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of a disability allowance review in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17343/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraFollowing the submission of further medical evidence by the person concerned, their case has been reviewed and they have been awarded disability allowance with effect from 14 November 2018. The first payment will be made on 1 May 2019.
Arrears of payment due will issue as soon as possible once any necessary adjustment is calculated and applied in respect of any overlapping payments.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
533. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when arrears will issue after an appeal for jobseeker's allowance was partially allowed in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17366/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned will receive arrears due in respect of his jobseekers allowance by Electronic Funds Transfer to his Bank Account on 15th April 2019.
I trust that this clarifies the matter.
534. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status of an application for disability allowance by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17418/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned has been awarded disability allowance with effect from 20 February 2019. The first payment will be made by his chosen payment method on 1 May 2019.
Arrears of payment due will issue as soon as possible once any necessary adjustment is calculated and applied in respect of any overlapping payments.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
