Written Answers Nos. 877-901
877. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Social Protection if a community employment placement will be extended in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31199/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraCommunity Employment (CE) is an active labour market programme designed to provide eligible long-term unemployed people and other disadvantaged persons with an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a temporary, fixed term basis.
Participation limits on these schemes are necessary to allow for the maximum utilisation of places amongst qualifying persons. It is important to note that participation is intended to be for a temporary fixed term and the positions offered are not full-time sustainable jobs. Instead, the placements are designed to break the cycle of unemployment and maintain work readiness, thereby improving a person’s opportunities of returning to the open labour market.
At the onset of the Covid-19 emergency last year my Department introduced a number of contingency measures to support CE schemes including the extension of participant contracts. With the progressive re-opening of the economy and other areas of society, and in line with the Governments National Recovery Plan and the further extension of supports put in place since the start of the pandemic, it has been decided that current CE participants who have been due to exit their schemes since 30th October 2020,will have their contracts extended to November 2021 and will exit CE on a phased basis during November 2021. This extension will afford the person concerned additional time to complete training .
During his time on CE, the person concerned achieved QQI awards and the purpose of this training and support was to prepare him for full-time sustainable employment .The Department's Employment Support Service can work with the person concerned to ensure that the benefits and experience he received during his time on CE are maximised. This process will help identify potential employment opportunities and offer support to him in overcoming any barriers to employment.
878. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Social Protection if a person (details supplied) in County Cork is entitled to the full rate of carer’s allowance. [31207/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraCarer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care.
A recipient of full rate CA is entitled to claim an increase for a qualified child (IQC) where:
- the child normally resides with them and
- the child is aged less than 18 or is aged between 18 and 21 and attending full-time day education
A recipient of full rate CA is entitled to claim an Increase for a Qualified Child (IQC) at the following rates:
- Full-rate IQC is paid with CA where the applicant is parenting alone
- Half-rate IQC is paid with CA if the applicant has a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant.
The person concerned is currently in receipt of full rate CA. According to the Department's records, the person concerned is married and living with her spouse. Therefore, IQCs are currently at half rate in respect of three qualified children.
Correspondence dated 24 May 2021 was received containing an affidavit confirming that the person concerned is separated and parenting alone.
A review of her claim commenced on receipt of this information. Once the review is complete the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy
879. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of an application by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31218/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that two appeals by the person concerned were registered in that office. The Domiciliary Care Allowance appeal was received on 16th March 2021 and the Carers Allowance appeal was received on 19th April 2021. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 20th May 2021 (DCA) and on 13th May 2021 (Carers) and both cases have been referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeals based on the documentary evidence presented or, if necessary, hold an oral hearing. Hearings are currently being conducted online or by telephone. Due to the current level of Covid-19 restrictions in-person oral appeal hearings have been suspended.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions on social welfare entitlements.
880. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of the review by her Department of the functioning of the IRIS application; if she will consider keeping the on-demand element open on an interim basis whilst the review is completed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31226/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Citizens Information Board (CIB), a statutory body under the aegis of my Department, provides funding to The Sign Language Interpreting Service (SLIS) - the national service for the development, promotion and delivery of sign language interpreting services to the Deaf community in Ireland. The Remote Interpreting Application was a six-month pilot project developed by CIB and SLIS, and funded under the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform’s Innovation Fund 2020.
The Pilot commenced on 1st January 2021 and as planned, will end on 30th June 2021. The Deaf community and service providers have already been made aware of this by CIB and SLIS. The CIB has informed me that due to the procurement arrangements in place, it is not possible to continue to operate the Application on an interim basis during the review process, as requested by the Deputy.
CIB has also informed me that an external independent evaluation of the Pilot is currently underway and that CIB and SLIS will review the evaluation report and its recommendations in detail, in considering the continuation or mainstreaming of the Application.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
881. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Social Protection if her Department can withhold personal data for up to seven years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31234/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraArticle 15 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) gives individuals the right to request a copy of their personal data.
My Department does not withhold personal data, unless the withholding of data is provided for and permitted by Articles 12(5) or 15(4) of the GDPR or Section 60 of the Data Protection Act 2018.
882. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Social Protection if there can be a grace period of reopening for business owners who are on the pandemic unemployment payment and are taking tentative steps to rebuild their business model to reflect this time such as in the case of a person (details supplied). [31235/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn 1st June Government announced it's National Economic Recovery Plan to support the reopening of the country as it recovers from Covid-19. Government acknowledges that some sectors will continue to be impacted and the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) scheme will be extended beyond 30 June 2021 for existing claimants who continue to be eligible for payment. To allow as much time as possible for employment to recover, a transitional approach will be taken with PUP payments reduced on a tapered basis over 6 months from next September. As recipients are placed on to the €203 rate, they will be transferred to standard Jobseeker terms commencing from this September. This will be done over a period of time and with advance notice to individuals impacted.
Where a self- employed person’s business activity is impacted by Covid-19, arrangements remain whereby they may earn up to €960 gross over 8 weeks and retain PUP subject to entitlement to the payment. Similarly the Part Time Job Incentive, which permits self-employed people to take up limited employment up to 24 hours and retain a personal payment of €128.60 per week will continue on its current terms until the end of the year. Alternatively a person may be eligible for support under the Jobseeker's schemes, depending on their circumstances.
The €1,000 Covid-19 Enterprise Support Grant to assist self -employed people to restart their business will continue to be available to self-employed people closing PUP claims until the end of 2021. I recently announced that self-employed people closing their PUP claim to reopen their business will be able to avail of this grant even if they have previously claimed it as part of a reopening in 2020.
I would advise the Deputy to recommend that the person concerned would contact their local Intreo Office to assess the options that may be available to them.
883. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will consider matters raised in correspondence (details supplied) regarding parent’s leave benefit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31263/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn April 1st, Parent’s Leave and Benefit was extended from 2 weeks for each parent to 5 weeks as announced in Budget 2021. The period during which this leave can be taken was also extended from 12 to 24 months so it can be taken up to a child's second birthday or within two years following adoption. This allows working parents to spend more time with their children during these important and formative years.
New parents can apply for paternity and maternity benefits before the birth of their child based on the expected due date. Parent's Benefit differs in that it can be taken in individual periods of a week over a period of 24 months. Providing the child's PPSN ensures that the Department can accept an application for Parents Benefit without further documentation from the parent and enables the Department to ensure that a parent receives their full entitlement during the two-year period.
Once a birth is registered, the child’s PPSN is allocated later that day. A letter notifying the PPSN is then issued to parents by Revenue. My Department is currently working on an online registration service which will improve the processing of births registrations.
While it is recommended parents apply for Parents Benefit in advance were possible, Parents Benefit applications are prioritised in order of date of commencement of the Parents Leave. This ensures applicants are paid in a timely manner. A Parents Benefit application can also be submitted via MyWelfare where over 80% of applications that fulfil the eligibility criteria are auto awarded within minutes.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
885. Deputy Violet-Anne Wynne asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a training fund of up to €1,000 is available for persons in receipt of jobseeker’s payment but is not available for participants of JobPath who can only avail of job related training on a discretionary case by case basis such as in the case of a person (details supplied). [31274/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraJobPath providers have their own discretionary funds available to pay for training or other interventions; the decision to approve or reject any request for funding is solely at the discretion of the JobPath provider.
They will take into account the duration, cost and relevance to the customer’s job goal preferences. The prevalence of employment opportunities in the sector will also be considered along with the likelihood that the customer secures full-time employment upon completion of the course.
Several courses are provided in-house while others are provided by specialist training providers including the Education and Training Boards (ETBs). There are no barriers to any participants pursuing training, including further education and training courses, providing they are relevant to the agreed personal progression plan.
While participants of JobPath do not have access to the Training Support Grant (TSG) provided by the Department, the JobPath companies will on a case by case basis provide similar funding.
I can confirm that the person concerned is currently engaged with JobPath and has been since 28/07/2020. Turas Nua has reviewed the request for funding and has advised the customer that funding would not be considered as their allotted end date on the JobPath programme is 27/07/2021, which is before the course commencement date of 15/08/2021. The customer will be referred back to Intreo services on completion of his JobPath programme. He can apply and be assessed for the Training Support Grant at this point.
886. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Social Protection the way in which her Department and agencies under her remit are meeting the requirement to have a statement on the compliance of their websites and mobile applications with the regulations under the directive 2016/2102 (EU), as articulated in SI No. 358/2020 - European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31290/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department is committed to making the information on all its websites accessible to all, regardless of ability. In order to achieve this, we have designed our websites to follow guidelines set out by the W3C (the World Wide Web Consortium). The W3C WAI (Web Accessibility Initiative) produces accessibility guidelines that are an internationally recognised benchmark of accessibility. Our sites currently comply with Level Double-A of the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0.
The Department is committed to inclusive design, enabling websites which can be used by all users including those who may have cognitive or physical impairments. This means that our sites can be used with assistive technologies such as screen readers or by using a keyboard for navigation, but also that the design of our sites supports cognitive and visual impairments such as dyslexia, colour blindness or those short of sight, to ensure for all users that there is a smooth journey and experience through our website.
The Department has accessibility statements on three of our websites, MyGovID, WelfarePartners and JobsIreland and will shortly add an accessibility statement to MyWelfare. The Department is aware of the new requirement for Public Body websites to meet the new WCAG 2.1 standard. Following the completion of audits of our sites, the websites’ accessibility statements will include a statement of commitment and a compliance status statement as required under the European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020.
The Department has three agencies under its remit that have websites, the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Authority and the Pensions Council.
The Citizens Information Board’s websites meet the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 as set out in the accessibility statements on citizensinformation.ie, citizensinformationboard.ie and mabs.ie. CIB is currently finalising a tender for a full accessibility audit of its websites and following the completion of the audits, the websites’ accessibility statements will include a statement of commitment and a compliance status statement as required under the European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020.
The Pensions Authority website meets the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 and currently has an accessibility statement. The Pensions Council website is currently being reviewed and as part of this process an accessibility statement will be added to this site.
887. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Social Protection the way in which her Department and agencies under her remit are meeting the requirement to subject to Regulation 6, public sector bodies shall, in accordance with Regulation 3, take necessary measures to make their websites and mobile applications more accessible by making them perceivable, operable, understandable and robust under the directive 2016/2102 (EU), as articulated in SI No. 358/2020 - European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31308/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department of Social Protection is committed to making the information on all its websites accessible to all, regardless of ability. In order to achieve this, we have designed our websites to follow guidelines set out by the W3C (the World Wide Web Consortium). The W3C WAI (Web Accessibility Initiative) produces accessibility guidelines that are an internationally recognised benchmark of accessibility. Our sites currently comply with Level Double-A of the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0.
The Department is committed to inclusive design, enabling websites which can be used by all users including those who may have cognitive or physical impairments. This means that our sites can be used with assistive technologies such as screen readers or by using a keyboard for navigation, but also that the design of our sites supports cognitive and visual impairments such as dyslexia, colour blindness or those short of sight, to ensure for all users that there is a smooth journey and experience through our website.
The Deartment has accessibility statements on three of our websites, MyGovID, WelfarePartners and JobsIreland and will shortly add an accessibility statement to MyWelfare. The Department is aware of the new requirement for Public Body websites to meet the new WCAG 2.1 standard. Following the completion of audits of our sites, the websites’ accessibility statements will include a statement of commitment and a compliance status statement as required under the European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020.
The Department has three agencies under its remit that have websites, the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Authority and the Pensions Council.
The Citizens Information Board’s websites meet the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 as set out in the accessibility statements on citizensinformation.ie, citizensinformationboard.ie and mabs.ie. CIB is currently finalising a tender for a full accessibility audit of its websites and following the completion of the audits, the websites’ accessibility statements will include a statement of commitment and a compliance status statement as required under the European Union (Accessibility of Websites and Mobile Applications of Public Sector Bodies) Regulations 2020.
The Pensions Authority website meets the requirements of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 and currently has an accessibility statement. The Pensions Council website is currently being reviewed and as part of this process an accessibility statement will be added to this site.
888. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Social Protection if a person (details supplied) in County Cork is entitled to arrears of a contributory pension. [31368/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned reached pension age on 12 October 2020. An application for State pension (contributory) was received on 23 April 2021. Determination of pension eligibility depends on the individual nature of an applicant’s circumstances. From the information available to my Department, the person concerned has a self-employment record since the 1995/96 tax year.
Under social welfare legislation, a self-employed contributor will not be regarded as satisfying the contribution conditions for State pension (contributory) unless the person has paid self-employment contributions in respect of at least one contribution year prior to reaching pension age (currently 66 years), and until all self-employment contributions payable have been paid.
The person’s application was disallowed on 20 May 2021 as they had self-employment liabilities outstanding for the 2018 and 2019 tax years. They were advised to contact my Department when these liabilities were paid. Confirmation of payment has been received on behalf of the person concerned and their self-employment record is currently being verified to update their social insurance record.
The pension entitlement of the person concerned will then be reviewed by a Deciding Officer who will notify them of the outcome.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
889. Deputy Seán Canney asked the Minister for Social Protection the threshold for earned income in order to qualify for deserted wife’s benefit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31381/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraDeserted wife’s benefit (DWB) is a social welfare payment, introduced in 1973 for women who were deserted by their husbands. The scheme has been closed to new applicants from 2 January 1997, following on the introduction of the one parent family payment. Entitlement to DWB is based on the social insurance contribution record of the person claiming the benefit or that of her husband.
Entitlement to this benefit is subject to a gross earnings limit of €20,000 per annum for claims made on or after 31 August 1992. For claims made before this date, no income limit applies.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
890. Deputy Seán Canney asked the Minister for Social Protection when the existing level threshold for earnings to qualify for the deserted wife’s benefit was last reviewed; if she plans to review the threshold limit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31382/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraDeserted wife’s benefit (DWB) is a social welfare payment, introduced in 1973 for women who were deserted by their husbands. The scheme has been closed to new applicants from 2 January 1997.
Entitlement to this benefit is subject to a gross earnings limit of €20,000 per annum for claim made on or after 31 August 1992. For claims made before this date, no income limit applies.
With effect from 3 May 2007, the income disregard was increased from €12,697.38 to its current level of €20,000. Any review of the income disregard would have to be considered in an overall budgetary context.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
891. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Social Protection if Covid-19 supports will remain in place for certain sectors beyond September 2021; and her views on whether certain employment such as wedding bands will not be able to take up full employment again on the lifting of restrictions and will have to wait for bookings to start coming in. [31396/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn 1st June Government announced its National Economic Recovery Plan to support the reopening of the country as it recovers from Covid-19. Government acknowledges that some sectors will continue to be impacted and the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) scheme will be extended beyond 30 June 2021 for existing claimants who continue to be eligible for payment. To allow as much time as possible for employment to recover, a transitional approach will be taken with PUP payments reduced on a tapered basis over 6 months from next September.
PUP will continue to be paid at existing rates until 7th September when the rate will commence a gradual reduction back to the jobseekers rate on a phased basis. Further adjustments are scheduled from 16 November 2021 and from 8 February 2022. As recipients are placed on to the €203 rate, they will be transferred to standard Jobseeker terms commencing from this September. This will be done over a period of time and with advance notice to individuals impacted.
Arrangements also remain for self-employed people to earn up to €960 gross over 8 weeks and retain PUP subject to entitlement to the payment. Similarly the Part Time Job Incentive, which permits self-employed people to take up limited employment up to 24 hours and retain a payment of €128.60 per week will continue on its current terms until the end of the year.
The €1,000 Covid-19 Enterprise Support Grant to assist self-employed people to restart their business will continue to be available to self-employed people closing PUP claims until the end of 2021. I recently announced that self-employed people closing their PUP claim to reopen their business will be able to avail of this grant even if they have previously claimed it as part of a reopening in 2020.
The PUP payment, similar to other Department of Social Protection statutory supports, is available to those who satisfy the conditions for the scheme and is not provided on a sectoral basis.
I trust that this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
892. Deputy James Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection if the carer’s benefit allocation of a person (details supplied) will be examined; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31419/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraCarer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care.
I can confirm that the person concerned was in receipt of CA in respect of her husband from 19 February 2015.
The Medical Control Section in the Department undertook a review of the CA claim of the person concerned and the requirement for full time care of the care recipient in October 2017. Following the receipt of the medical information from the care recipient, the Department’s Medical Assessor (MA) found that the care recipient did not require full time care and attention and deemed the person concerned was not eligible for CA. A Natural Justice letter issued to the person concerned in August 2019.
The person concerned submitted further medical evidence to the Department in September 2019 and this was referred to the Department’s MA. Having reviewed this additional information, the Department upheld their original decision that the person concerned was not eligible for CA.
Due to the COVID lockdown in March 2020, the Department did not issue any letters of termination until May 2021, when the person concerned was informed that their eligibility for CA would cease on the 26th June 2021. The customer subsequently contacted the Department to indicate that they would provide additional medical information for the care recipient. Once any additional information is provided, this will be considered and the Department will notify the person concerned of the outcome of the review of his claim.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
893. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of employees who are on secondment from her Department to other organisations; the number of these who are in receipt of a higher duty allowance; the number of staff who were previously seconded and subsequently returned to work in her Department on a lower grade than their secondment position; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31424/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere are currently 26 staff on secondment from my Department. 5 of the staff in question are in receipt of allowances in respect of the work that they are undertaking while on secondment.
In accordance with Department of Public Expenditure and Reform rules, during periods of secondment, staff maintain their terms and conditions of employment including their civil service grade and when the secondment period ends they return to the Department at that grade.
894. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection the amount spent on the wage subsidy scheme for persons with disabilities in 2019, 2020 and to date in 2021; the amount spent on the grants for employers to retain employees with disabilities in 2019, 2020 and to date in 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31434/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department provides a range of supports and grants to assist persons with disabilities to gain employment and to give financial support to employers. These schemes are outlined below.
The Wage Subsidy Scheme provides financial incentives to private sector employers to employ people with a disability. The work offered must be for a minimum of 21 hours per week and the subsidy is available up to 39 hours per week.
The Reasonable Accommodation Fund aims to assist both jobseekers with disabilities and private sector employers seeking to employ or retain a person with a disability, by providing a range of grants.
In summary, the grants available are:
- Workplace Equipment /Adaptation Grant, which provides funding to make the workplace more accessible.
- Job Interview – Interpreter Grant, which is a grant for an interpreter to accompany, for example, a person with hearing loss to a job interview.
- Personal Reader Grant, which provides funding for a personal reader to assist someone who is blind or visually impaired in their work.
- Employee Retention Grant Scheme, which aims to help employers retain employees who acquire a disability.
In addition to the Reasonable Accommodation Fund grants, the Disability Awareness Support Scheme (DASS) provides funding so that private sector employers can provide Disability Awareness Training for their employees. The purpose of the training is to deliver clear and accurate information about disability and to address questions that employers and employees may have.
Expenditure on the Wage Subsidy Scheme for the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 (Estimated figure for the period January - May 2021) is in the table below:
Expenditure on Wage Subsidy Scheme
|
2019 |
2020 |
2021 (Estimated Jan - May) |
|
€000 |
€000 |
€000 |
|
23,810 |
18,355 |
6,146 |
Expenditure on Disability Support to employers for the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 (Estimated figure for the period January - May 2021) is in the table below:
Expenditure on Disability Supports
|
2019 |
2020 |
2021 (Estimated Jan - May) |
|
€000 |
€000 |
€000 |
|
100 |
107 |
33 |
895. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated additional cost of extending current supports which encourage and incentivise employers to hire and retain a person with a disability such as the wage subsidy scheme for persons with disabilities and the grants for employers to retain employees with disabilities to allow self-employed persons with a disability apply for these supports to hire and retain themselves; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31435/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra896. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated additional cost of permitting self-employed persons with a disability to apply for and the grants for employers to retain employees with disabilities and the wage subsidy scheme for persons with disabilities for themselves as if they were an employee; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31436/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra897. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated additional cost of permitting self-employed persons with a disability to be considered as an employee for the purpose of accessing the grants for employers to retain employees with disabilities and the wage subsidy scheme for persons with disabilities to hire and retain themselves as if they were employees; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31437/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 895, 896 and 897 together.
People with a disability who are self-employed, or considering self-employment, cannot avail of the Wage Subsidy Scheme (WSS). This provision also applies to directors of limited companies who work as paid employees in their company. The WSS is an employment support to private sector employers, the objective of which is to encourage employers to employ people with disabilities and thereby increase the numbers of people with disabilities participating in the open labour market. The incentive is intended to encourage employers to take on new employees and the scheme provides financial incentives to employers to hire new staff with a disability for between 21 and 39 subsidised hours per week under a contract of employment. The employee must be subject to and have the same rights as per the conditions of employment as any of their other employees. These conditions include the payment of Class A PRSI contributions. As the WSS is a demand-led scheme, there is no way of predicting with any degree of accuracy the increased costs resulting from permitting those who are self-employed to avail of the schemes.
However, my Department provides a wide range of employment-related supports for persons with disabilities seeking to enter self-employment.
Disability Allowance and the Blind Pension.
The Disability Allowance and Blind Pension schemes are structured to support persons with a disability to achieve their employment ambitions - either in self-employment or as an employee.
Where a person in receipt of either payment commences employment or self-employment the first €140 of weekly earnings will be disregarded in the means test associated with the payment, while only half of earnings between €140 and €350 are assessed.
Resulting from a measure in Budget 2021, as of this month (June) the earnings disregards for both schemes increased by €20, from ?120 to €140 per week.
Invalidity Pension and Illness Benefit.
Persons in receipt of Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit (the latter for a minimum of 26 weeks) and who wish to enter or re-enter employment or self-employment can apply for the Partial Capacity Benefit scheme.
The personal rate of payment of Partial Capacity Benefit is based on a medical assessment of a person’s restriction, regarding their capacity for work, whether the person was in receipt of Illness Benefit or Invalidity Pension and their current rate of payment. After the medical assessment, if a person's disability is rated as moderate, severe or profound their previous payment continues at 50%, 75% or 100%, respectively.
There is no restriction on the number of hours that can be worked or on the amount that can be earned from employment for persons availing of the scheme.
A person who participates on the scheme may return to an Illness Benefit or Invalidity Pension payment if, for example, the employment ceases or if the person cannot continue to work.
Back to Work Enterprise Allowance (BTWEA)
The Back to Work Enterprise Allowance scheme encourages people getting certain social welfare payments to become self-employed. This includes persons in receipt of Disability Allowance, Blind Pension and Invalidity Pension.
A person who avails of the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance scheme retains a percentage of their social welfare payment for up to 2 years. They receive support through their DSP Intreo Case Officer, who will refer them to their Local Development Company who assists them in discussing options and to explore the viability of their business idea.
Once accepted onto the scheme the person retains 100% of their original payment in year one and 75% year two.
Reasonable Accommodations and Self Employment
The Departments Reasonable Accommodation Fund includes, the Workplace Equipment / Adaptation Grant (WEAG):
Where a person with a disability is self-employed and requires a more accessible workplace or adapted equipment they can apply for a grant towards the costs of adapting premises or equipment.
A grant of up to €6,350 is available towards the cost of adaptations to premises or equipment.
It is important to note that applications from persons who are self employed in excess of this sum may be considered on an individual basis, up to a maximum of €9,523, if specialist training for assistive technology is required.
898. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Social Protection the measures her Department has in place to address concerns of seconded local employment scheme and community employment scheme employees with regard to their employment particularly in relation pension allowances and unpensioned portions of salary which constitute core pay; if direct engagement and mediation is in place to address pension-related concerns in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31507/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI refer the Deputy to my response to recent similar questions (PQ 29106/21 on 31/5/2021, PQs 27906/21 and 27905/21 on 25 May 2021).
In accordance with Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (DPER) rules, civil and public servants on secondment to other bodies maintain their terms and conditions of employment including salary during their period of secondment. Any additional payments made during that period are non-pensionable.
With regard to the individual in question, prior to her redeployment to my Department in 2012, she was employed by FAS as a clerical officer. She was seconded from FAS to another body for a number of years and was paid at her substantive grade of clerical officer plus an additional non-pensionable allowance, in accordance with DPER rules and the secondment agreement she entered into at that time. During periods of secondment, civil servants may initiate grievances as appropriate under the Civil Service Grievance Procedure in accordance with Department of Finance Circular 11/2001.
899. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated additional cost of increasing the funding to the EmployAbility Service by 5%, 10% and 25% respectively; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31525/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department’s EmployAbility Services are currently delivered under contract by 24 different organisations located around the state and each contract is reflective of the cost of that service in that contracted area. The total collective value of all contracts for 2021 is just over €10m.
The estimated additional cost of increasing the collective contract values of the EmployAbility Service by 5%, 10% and 25% is approximately €500,000, €1,000,000 and €2,500,000 respectively, based on current contract values for 2021.
I trust this information is of assistance to the Deputy.
900. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection the estimated additional cost of increasing the funding to the walk peer programme to extend the service to each county; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31526/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Ability Programme is a pre-activation programme for young people with disabilities. The funding for this programme will amount to around €16 million over a three-year period and is being provided jointly under the EU's ESF Programme for Employability, Inclusion and Learning (PEIL) Operational Programme 2014-2020 and the Irish Exchequer. The programme will support over 2,600 young people with disabilities between 15 and 29 years of age. Pobal has been contracted by my Department to manage the programme.
The aim of the Ability Programme is to help bring young people with disabilities who are not work-ready closer to the labour market through engagement in training and personal development activities, which would be followed by an incremental exposure to work. The programme is being delivered by 27 community and voluntary groups from around the country, selected on foot of a competitive process. The projects being funded have been designed to assist young people in their transition from school to further education and employment.
The WALK PEER organisation is funded as a standalone project under the Ability Programme and not as a programme in its own right. The project aims to support 200 young people with special educational needs aged 15-24 years within 3 special schools’ settings to develop their employment aspirations, identify their career goals and to experience work in the open labour market. Total Ability funding of €640,848 has been awarded to WALK PEER over the course of the 3-year programme.
If the WALK PEER project was to be replicated on the same scale to an additional 25 counties, based on a simple scale up calculation, this would require additional funding in excess of €5m per year.
It should be noted that Walkinstown Green Social Enterprises Limited, which is wholly owned by WALK Ltd, was also awarded €430,175 under the Ability Programme to fund the WALK REAL Project, bringing the total combined amount of funding to WALK Ltd to €1,071,023 over the course of the Ability Programme.
I hope this clarifies the issue for the Deputy.
901. Deputy Pauline Tully asked the Minister for Social Protection if the disregard which now applies to disability allowance recipients who have been granted bursaries, stipends or scholarships towards completing a PhD will be extended to students who have been granted bursaries, stipends or scholarships towards completing a PhD who are on other means tested disability payments such as the blind pension; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31532/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI recently signed Regulations which introduced a new disregard which applies to Disability Allowance recipients who have been granted bursaries, stipends or scholarships towards completing a PhD. It is subject to an annual limit of €20,000 per annum (i.e. if a recipient gets more than one bursary, the combination cannot exceed €20,000) and is available for a maximum of four years.
My Department encourages other social welfare recipients to avail of education and training through the Back to Education scheme, as well as by referrals to Education and Training Board courses through the Department's Intreo service. In addition, income received from the SUSI grant is disregarded in the means test for most social welfare schemes.
Also, there are a number of scholarships, such as those awarded by certain charitable organisations, which are not assessed as part of the means test for social welfare payments. These include payments under the 1916 Bursary Fund and under Higher Educational Scholarships for Adult Learners from Uversity to a maximum of €7,000 per annum. Uversity is a registered charity that has been awarding Higher Education Scholarships to adult learners since 2018.
Any extension of means disregards would need to be examined in an overall budgetary context.
