Written Answers Nos. 102-129
112. Deputy Réada Cronin asked the Minister for Social Protection if in the event of longer restrictions in the matter of the pandemic, she will commit to increasing expenditure on the pandemic unemployment payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31891/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pandemic Unemployment Payment, or PUP, was introduced as an emergency measure to support people who lost their employment due to Government mandated public health restrictions.
To date expenditure on the scheme is over €8 billion and just under 900,000 people have benefitted from the scheme. This demonstrates the Government's absolute commitment to support workers and businesses who have been severely impacted by Covid-19.
As public health restrictions have been relaxed in recent months tens of thousands of people have already returned to work. The number of people in receipt of the PUP has fallen from 482,000 in February to just under 228,000 this week.
In order to allow as much time as possible for the economy to re-open and for employment to recover, the Government has decided to taper the payment and withdraw it on a phased basis over a prolonged period. Accordingly the rates of payment will remain unchanged until September when they will commence a gradual reduction over 6 months back to the standard jobseekers terms.
The final changes to the PUP are planned for February 2022 meaning that a payment that was originally intended to be in place for just twelve weeks will now run for almost two years.
I believe that this approach is fair and proportionate.
Of course as has been the case throughout the pandemic, the Government will continue to keep the position in relation to the PUP under review in line with public health advice.
116. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Social Protection her views on the treatment of seasonal workers who had not returned to work prior to the outbreak of the pandemic in March 2020; the way her Department plans to deal with these cases into the future given the severe reduction in contributions made due to their loss of employment due to Covid; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35297/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pandemic Unemployment Payment is a statutory scheme for employees and the self-employed who were in employment on or after 13th March 2020 and who lost employment as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Entitlement to the scheme was based on the loss of an actual employment rather than potential or prospective but unrealised employment. It would be impossible in practical terms to establish or verify a loss of potential employment.
However given that the hospitality sector did largely re-open during the summer and autumn of last year most people did have an opportunity to access seasonal work and establish a social insurance record.
Where this work ceased due to the conclusion of the usual season, the workers were eligible for Jobseeker's Benefit in the usual way. Where this work ceased early due to the pandemic, the workers were then eligible to claim PUP; many of them did so. Similarly PUP was extended to students who typically comprise a large proportion of the seasonal workforce. While on PUP, claimants qualify for fully paid contributions.
For those who do not have sufficient contributions to qualify for Jobseeker's Benefit or who do not meet the criteria for PUP, the means-tested Jobseeker's Allowance payment is available.
I trust that this clarifies the position.
117. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 489 of 10 February 2021, the steps which she has taken to address the plight of workers as outlined in the correspondence referenced; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34172/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment or PUP is a statutory support which is available to people who have lost their employment as a result of Government mandated restrictions arising from Covid-19. It is not intended as a permanent or standing scheme to respond to the normal operation of the labour market. While every loss of employment hits the workers affected very hard and we would want to do all we can to cushion this impact and help the workers affected it would be neither feasible nor equitable to extend PUP to every situation of a loss of employment particularly as the economy re-opens. I understand that in this case the lay-offs are not due to Covid-19 restrictions imposed by Government.
If an employee loses their job for reasons for reasons other than Government mandated Covid-19 restrictions, they can avail of support under the Jobseeker's Benefit or Jobseeker's Allowances schemes. Jobseeker's Benefit is a social insurance scheme based on an individual’s PRSI record and Jobseeker's Allowance is a social assistance scheme which is subject to a means test.
Support may also be available under the Department's means tested Supplementary Welfare Allowance.
The Department's employment services also stand ready to help any worker prepare for and find new employment.
Issues around redundancy and employment rights are a matter for my colleague the Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment and I have arranged to forward this correspondence to him.
118. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for Social Protection the measures being taken to ensure continuance of face to face appointments for the public with community welfare officers given the importance of this service continuing and not being on a virtual office basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35345/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Community Welfare Service in my department delivers the supplementary welfare allowance scheme which is the safety net within the overall social welfare system. This scheme provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents.
While seeking to comply with public health restrictions, Intreo offices remained open throughout the pandemic albeit on a limited basis. The offices are now open five days per week and any person with a need to access the Community Welfare Service can attend at an Intreo office every morning or make an appointment for an afternoon meeting. As the deputy may also be aware the Department has also put in place special arrangements to make it easier for victims of domestic violence to access the CWS services during the pandemic.
In line with public health advice my department is seeking to reduce face to face contact and where possible access for customers to the community welfare service is being provided over the telephone but in-person engagements can be facilitated. Since the starts of the pandemic in March last year, over 76,000 exceptional and urgent needs payments have been processed by community welfare officers using both telephone based and faced to face engagements with clients.
I consider the community welfare service to be an essential service and my department will continue to provide access to customers during the course of the current pandemic.
Customers attending a face to face meeting with a member of my staff are requested to wear a face covering or mask. Customers are advised not to attend in person if they have any symptoms of COVID-19, are awaiting a COVID-19 test or test results, are required to self isolate or restrict their movements.
Perspex screens are in place for the safety of both staff and customers, while the duration of all face to face meetings are kept as short as practically possible and social distancing guidelines observed at all times.
I wish to assure the Deputy that the supplementary welfare allowance scheme is kept under review to ensure that it continues to provide a timely response to support those most in need of assistance. Providing a prompt effective service is a key objective for dealing with applications for all schemes, and in particular for the supplementary welfare allowance scheme.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
119. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will consider not reducing the pandemic unemployment payment given the level of poverty experienced by those on social protection payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34794/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pandemic Unemployment Payment or PUP has been an important support for hundreds of thousands of workers and their families through COVID19. To date expenditure on the scheme is over €8 billion with payments made to just under 900,000 people.
UP was introduced as an exceptional measure in response to the global pandemic. As thousands of jobs are resuming each week with the gradual lifting of public health restrictions, the requirement for emergency measures is diminishing. It is important from a sustainability and equity point of view that we begin the process of transitioning to standard social welfare levels of payment over time.
To allow as much time as possible for employment to recover, a tapered approach will be taken with PUP whereby the rates of payment will remain unchanged until September when they will commence a gradual reduction over 6 months back to the jobseekers rate. Advance notice will be given to recipients so that there is no sudden and unexpected withdrawal of support.
Irish social welfare rates of payment compare well with peer countries. Social transfers, excluding pensions, continued to perform strongly in reducing the at-risk-of-poverty rate. Without social transfers and pension income, EU-SILC research indicates that the at-risk-of-poverty rate would be 41.4%. After social transfers, the rate is 12.8%. This is a poverty reduction effect of nearly 70%, one of the highest in Europe.
It will take some time for the full social impact and the impact on poverty levels of the pandemic to become clear, particularly in the form of official data which takes time to gather and process. Nevertheless, data and research published by the ESRI since the beginning of the pandemic shows the importance of the social protection system for supporting those on low incomes in general and the role of pandemic supports in ‘cushioning’ the impact of the unemployment shock related to the pandemic.
I trust that this clarifies the position at this time.
120. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Social Protection the steps she plans to take in order to introduce a cost of disability as committed to in the Programme for Government; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35181/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Programme for Government commits the Government to use the research into the cost of disability to individuals and families to properly inform the direction of future policy. My Department commissioned Indecon International Consultants to carry out research into the cost of disability in Ireland.
The report has just been received and my Department is considering it in detail. This matter is significantly wider than the income support system as many of the costs faced by people with disabilities relate to health and other services. The issue will not therefore be addressed through income support actions alone which is why a whole-of-Government perspective is being taken. My Department is therefore sharing the report with and engaging with the pertinent government departments who have a role to play in the delivery of disability services.
Once this process is complete I intend to submit the report to Government and to then host a forum of interested stakeholders to discuss the report's findings and potential approaches to the issues raised. I expect to be in a position to do this later this year.
Separately the income supports and employment services for people with disability are continually reviewed by my Department. In Budget 2021, I introduced a number of improvements, including an increase of €20 in the earnings disregard for recipients of Disability Allowance, a €1,000 Training Grant to help people with disabilities who are seeking employment, and an increase of €150 to the Carer’s Support Grant. Other changes introduced in recent years included establishing a fast-track reapplication process for people with disabilities who take up employment but subsequently lose that employment, enabling people with a long term disability to retain their free travel pass for 5 years if they take up employment and removing the requirement that work be of a ‘rehabilitative’ nature, where a person in receipt of Disability Allowance wishes to undertake employment, has been removed.
121. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Social Protection if she has examined the estimated number of persons who will remain on the pandemic unemployment payment by September 2021 and who will therefore see a reduction in their payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35182/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pandemic Unemployment Payment, or PUP, has been an important support for hundreds of thousands of workers and their families through COVID19, demonstrating Government's commitment to workers. In total over €8 billion has been paid out on PUP. A total of approximately 870,000 workers have received at least one PUP payment. The Government has also supported employers who have been severely impacted by Covid-19 through the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme.
Approximately 227,980 people received a PUP payment this week, representing a drop of 254,000, or almost 53%, since the numbers in receipt of PUP peaked this year at around 482,000 in February. This reflects the impact of the careful re-opening of sectors of the economy, where it is feasible to do so. Our experience to date has shown that the requirement for emergency measures has been diminishing as more and more people return to work as restrictions are gradually lifted.
As part of the National Economic Recovery Plan, Government announced changes to PUP including a transitional approach to its withdrawal on a tapered basis over 6 months from this September.
The reduction in PUP numbers will depend on continued progress in re-opening the economy and the response of the labour market to this re-opening.
So far the response of the labour market has been very strong and we still have some key sectors that have yet to re-open or fully re-open. Therefore, although it is impossible to be definitive I would expect that the numbers as of early to mid-September this year (2021) - when the PUP payment rate changes - will fall significantly below their low-point of 200,000 last seen in September of last year (2020). We will continue to monitor the numbers in light of the economy's response to the public health restrictions.
122. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Social Protection if she has met with or engaged with employers in particular with small business owners who are experiencing difficulties with staff recruitment allegedly due to the fact that persons are reluctant to come off the pandemic unemployment payment. [34501/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) is available to employees and self-employed people who have lost their employment and the income from that employment due to the pandemic, and who satisfy the other qualifying conditions of the scheme.
As restrictions lift and businesses re-open, employers are contacting their employees to return to work. As would be expected, the vast majority of employees do return and close their PUP claims.
In response to reports from some employers of cases where employees were refusing to return to work, my Department created an employer support line in March 2020 – c19employerreports@welfare.ie.
This facility allowed employers to contact the Department if they were experiencing problems in rehiring staff who were in receipt of the PUP or to report cases of suspected mis-claiming of the PUP.
This facility has been published on Gov.ie and officials from my Department's Special Investigations Unit and Employers Relations Division has also highlighted it in their engagements and discussions with employers and employers representative bodies, particularly those in the hospitality and personal services sectors.
Up to the end of May, some 1,270 employers have contacted the Department through this facility, resulting in reviews of 3,330 PUP claims. Where further information is required to finalise a review, approximately 500 of these PUP claims were stopped. These figures represent a tiny percentage of the hundreds of thousands of people who have availed of the PUP.
Any employer who is experiencing difficulties in staff recruitment should contact my Department for assistance. In addition to the reporting facility to address cases where staff were reluctant to return to employment, my Department can also assist in identifying potentially suitable employees from Live Register and PUP payment data.
Last year the number of people in receipt of the PUP fell from a peak of over 600,000 to just over 200,000 as the economy reopened. This trend has continued this year. Just under 228,000 people received payment under the scheme this week, a reduction of over 253,000 from the 2021 peak in February following the reintroduction of Covid related health restrictions last December.
In the last 8 weeks, the number of people in receipt of the payment has reduced by over 157,000. This clearly shows that the vast majority of people want to return to work as soon as their sector reopens, and their job returns.
To date expenditure on the scheme is over €8 billion which demonstrates the Government’s clear and ongoing commitment to support workers and businesses who have been severely impacted by Covid-19 and approximately 870,000 have availed of this support. The scale of this support is unprecedented in the history of the State.
I can assure the Deputy that as the economy reopens my Department will continue to support workers and employers as we have done at all stages throughout the pandemic.
123. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Social Protection the level of funding allocated to local employment services and jobs clubs in 2019 and 2020. [35008/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department contracts for the provision of Local Employment Services (LES) and Job Clubs to provide services and facilities to support unemployed people to enter or return to work.
In 2019 the total contracted value for Local Employment Services was €19.6m and the same value again in 2020. The total contracted value for Job Clubs was €5.3m in 2019 and €5m in 2020.
Up to now, all contracts for local employment services were issued for a single 12 month period and rolled-over on an annual basis. Many of these contracts have been in place, with very little change, since the early 1990s. Good governance and national and EU public procurement rules require that my Department does not continue this practice of simply rolling over contracts for employment services. Therefore in order to ensure service continuity and enhance the provision of employment services, my Department is undertaking a two phased procurement of employment services on a multi-annual basis.
Under phase 1, the Department will shortly roll out a new regional employment service model whereby service providers are paid for each client they engage with. These new multi-annual contracts put a strong emphasis on service quality and community linkages. Phase 2 of the procurement process, later this year, will see the new regional employment service model roll out Statewide, including those areas where current providers of contracted local employment services operate.
124. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Social Protection the measures she will take to tackle the crisis of youth unemployment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34795/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra138. Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin asked the Minister for Social Protection the latest figures for youth unemployment; the action that is being taken to tackle the unprecedented levels of youth unemployment that have emerged during the pandemic; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29301/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra147. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Social Protection if her Department is drafting plans to tackle youth unemployment with specific focus on those not in education, employment or training; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29937/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra171. Deputy Jennifer Murnane O'Connor asked the Minister for Social Protection the plans in place to tackle youth unemployment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35343/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 124, 138, 147 and 171 together.
The experience of past recessions indicates that youth employment tends to be significantly impacted by any labour market shock. This is because many employers operate a "last in-first out" approach when reducing their labour force. Moreover, in the case of the COVID-19 pandemic, the impact on our youth is driven by the tendency for many younger people to work in some of the sectors most severely impacted by the pandemic: namely, the hospitality (accommodation & food) and retail sectors.
Prior to the pandemic, the seasonally adjusted youth unemployment rate (15-24 year olds) stood at just under 12% in December 2019. Latest estimates from the CSO, however, indicate that the traditional unemployment rate for young persons stood at 20.1 percent for young people in May. This estimate excludes those in receipt of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP). When all those in receipt of the PUP are included, this gives a COVID-19 adjusted unemployment rate estimate of 58.8 percent for young people at the end of May.
A significant number of PUP recipients are students. As of last week (June 22nd 2021), it is estimated that just under 27,000 PUP recipients are students, with the vast majority under the age of 25. Using international measures of unemployment, set by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), students are generally not counted as unemployed, as they are not considered part of the labour force. Therefore, the inclusion of PUP recipients, including students, in the COVID-19 adjusted measure of youth unemployment serves to inflate this measure. While the employment of young people has been significantly affected by the pandemic, we also know from past recessions that they are also the most resilient, with youth unemployment levels typically falling quite quickly once economic activity resumes. Many have already returned to work, and others will continue to return to their previous employment, as public health restrictions continue to ease. However, others will require assistance and support to return to employment, re-skill and to find new jobs. As a consequence, my Department is supporting a range of initiatives to assist people, including young people, back to work.
As outlined under the Government’s ‘Economic Recovery Plan’, which was launched on June 1st 2021, a central focus of the recovery process will be on helping people get back to work, training or education by extending labour market supports, and through intense activation and skills opportunities. Pathways to Work 2021-2025 will be a key delivery mechanism of the Economic Recovery Plan’s second Pillar on ‘Helping People Back into Work’.
In supporting people back into employment – including young people – the Pathways to Work 2021–2025 strategy will seek to minimise any long-term scarring effects of the pandemic on the labour force for those whose jobs are permanently lost while providing support to those unemployed pre-pandemic. The strategy will also set out how an expanded Public Employment Service will utilise its existing and expanded capacity to deliver effective services in a post-COVID labour market with an overall target of increasing the caseload capacity by 100,000 per annum.
Some of the key supports for young people that will form part of Pathways to Work and the Economic Recovery Plan include:
- Expanding the JobsPlus scheme to 8,000 places and enhancing the incentive to recruit young jobseekers in particular, by increasing the youth age limit from 25 to 30 years.
- Accelerating rollout of an additional 50,000 education and training places to support jobseekers to upskill and reskill for the labour market.
- A new Government Youth Employment Charter for intensive engagement with young jobseeker which will build on the new EU Reinforced Youth Guarantee.
- A new work placement scheme which will be open to all regardless of age, but should be particularly attractive to and beneficial for young people requiring work experience.
My Department works closely with the Further Education and Training sector to provide access to training, upskilling and reskilling opportunities. The Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science also last week announced the extension of the Apprenticeship Incentivisation Scheme until the end of December 2021. This scheme provides financial supports for employers who register apprentices to a national apprenticeship.
In addition, the Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-2025 was launched in April by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. It sets out a five-year strategy to deliver on the Programme for Government commitment of reaching 10,000 new apprentice registrations per year by 2025. The plan provides a roadmap to a single apprenticeship system and new supports for employers and apprentices, which will prove attractive for young people.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
125. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Social Protection the steps she is taking to fulfil the Programme for Government commitment to’ develop a carer’s guarantee proposal that will provide a core basket of services to carers across the country regardless of where they live. [35288/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Programme for Government commits the Government to develop a ‘Carers Guarantee’ proposal that will provide a core basket of services to carers across the country, regardless of where they live. This commitment comes under the remit of the Department of Health and is matter for my colleague the Minister for Health.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
126. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason a person in their 80s who has been in receipt of the State pension (contributory) and a qualified adult increase for nearly 20 years and whose spouse is the qualified adult and is also in their 80s has received a means text request from her Department; if this is a random review; if so, if the procedure will be reviewed that allows those over 80 to be randomly reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35265/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn increase for qualified adult is a means tested payment, payable to a State pension (contributory) (SPC) claimant whose spouse, civil partner or cohabitant is being wholly or mainly maintained by them, and where that qualified adult’s personal means from any source does not exceed a means test income limit. Currently there are about 56,000 beneficiaries of this payment.
As part of my Department’s commitment to ensuring that claimants are receiving their full and correct entitlements, ongoing reviews of all means tested payments are carried out.
In the case of an increase for qualified adult (IQA) on SPC, the primary claimant is contacted by my Department to notify them that their continuing entitlement to the means tested IQA payment is being examined. In addition, details of the means of their qualified adult is requested. A questionnaire is required to be completed but additional documentation is not requested for the majority of reviews. In the region of 10% of the SPC IQA cases are reviewed each year. The review letters have been approved by the National Adult Literacy Association for ease of comprehension.
Where a qualified adult has weekly means of not more than €100, the maximum rate of IQA is payable. Where their weekly means is over €100 and not more than €310, a tapering reduced rate of IQA is payable. If the qualified adult has means of more than €310 per week, this exceeds the means limit and there is no entitlement to an IQA payment. For SPC claimants, only the means of the qualified adult are taken into account. In the case of joint bank accounts or joint ownership of land or property, half the value or amount is assessed as means for the qualified adult. The family home is not assessable.
t is open to claimants to contact my Department regarding the return of the requested information. Flexibility is provided if there is difficulty in replying within the requested timeframe.
I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.
127. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Social Protection if she has considered increasing the role of local employment services and jobs clubs as part of the plan to tackle increased unemployment rates for younger persons. [35009/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe impact of Covid-19 on our youth, not least those in the labour market, has been particularly stark. The youth unemployment rate, adjusted for Covid-19, stood at 58.8 per cent in May. While a significant proportion of this number is made up by students in full-time education, it does not detract from the high toll the pandemic has had on the employment prospects of our youth. The Government’s Economic Recovery Plan, launched on the 1st of June, has a specific focus on combating youth unemployment. This plan places particular emphasis on ensuring this younger cohort is diverted away from long-term unemployment. A new Youth Employment Charter, part of the EU's ambitious Reinforced Youth Guarantee, will seek to engage intensively with young jobseekers. In addition, it broadens the definition of young jobseekers to include all those under the age of 30. An expanded Jobs Plus scheme, with 8,000 places overall, will continue to provide a higher incentive for the recruitment of young unemployed people, while the new Work Placement Experience Programme aims to support 10,000 participants by end-2022.Currently, the Local Employment Services and Job Clubs already play a significant role in tackling youth unemployment, specifically those in long-term unemployment. The new models of employment services my Department is now starting to procure with the RFT that was published at the end of May, will maintain this emphasis. Where younger cohorts do become long-term unemployed, every assistance will be given, including access to the most appropriate training to address their needs.The forthcoming Pathways to Work 2021-2025 strategy will reflect the importance the Government places on tackling youth unemployment.
128. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Social Protection if she plans to extend provision of rent supplement for survivors of domestic abuse beyond 2021; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35180/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra152. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will further extend the domestic violence emergency rent supplement scheme past the end of 2021 and consider continuing the scheme on a permanent basis in a post-Covid Ireland. [35377/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 128 and 152 together.
Lead responsibility for the development and provision of services to support victims of domestic violence rests with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. In August 2020, I agreed a protocol with Tusla on a pilot basis to make rent supplement more easily accessible to victims of domestic violence. This seeks to ensure that victims of domestic violence are not prevented from leaving their home because of financial or accommodation difficulties. The arrangements in this protocol are additional and complementary to, and not a substitution for, the range of other supports already in place for victims of domestic violence. There are currently 62 victims of domestic violence being supported with rent supplement under these arrangements. Under the protocol, after six months period of support, it is expected that the customer will, if eligible, be able to migrate to HAP or other social housing supports supported by their local authority. In line with the National Economic Recovery Plan, these special arrangements for victims of domestic abuse will remain in place at least until the end of the year. A review of the pilot will be undertaken at that stage, involving key stakeholders, to determine whether the provision of rent supplement to victims of domestic violence should be extended and to take on board any lessons learned. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
129. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Social Protection the capacity the social insurance fund has to support workers in the face of new challenges in the work, life environment; and the way this can best be harnessed. [34509/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraSocial insurance contributions from employed workers and their employers, and from self-employed workers are paid into the social insurance fund. All social insurance benefits are paid out of the fund which operates on a pay-as-you-go basis, with the Exchequer acting as the residual financier where there is a shortfall between social insurance income and the cost of social insurance benefits paid.The social insurance fund is currently facing significant financial and sustainability challenges. In 2020, the fund recorded an operational deficit of €3.44 billion. The revised estimate provides for a deficit of €4.2 billion in 2021 as receipts from contributions to the fund are expected to be insufficient to meet expenditure due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on employment and the scale of expenditure on benefits, such as the pandemic unemployment payment, required to mitigate its effects. Funding this deficit will require an Exchequer subvention of €3.76 billion in addition to the remaining €453 million accumulated when the fund was in surplus prior to 2020. While employed workers who are contributors to the social insurance fund have always had access to the full range of benefits available from it, there has been significant expansion of access to such benefits to self-employed workers in recent years. However, the 4% of income contribution rate to the fund by self-employed workers, who are now covered for approximately 93% of the value of all benefits paid by the fund, is 11 percentage points lower than the standard combined employee and employer rate of 15.05% of employee earnings. This is one example of several sustainability challenges facing the fund. The Programme for Government ‘Our Shared Future’ includes two commitments that are likely to impact on the future income and expenditure of the social insurance fund. One being to consider increasing all classes of social insurance over time to replenish the fund to help pay for measures and changes to be agreed including, inter alia, to the State pension system, improvement in short-term sick pay benefits, parental leave benefits, pay-related jobseeker’s benefit and treatment benefit. The second commitment is the establishment of a Commission on Pensions to examine sustainability and eligibility issues with State pensions and the social insurance fund. The Commission was established in November 2020 and I expect that, in accordance with its terms of reference, it will submit its report to me in the near future. Considering the interaction of the social insurance and taxation systems, the terms of reference of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare, established by the Department of Finance in April 2021, includes an intention to examine what changes, if any, should be made to the social insurance system, including structure and benefits coverage, while ensuring sustainability. I expect that the work of this Commission in this regard will contribute to informing future policy in the area of social insurance generally.I, as Minister for Social Protection, am required to have an Actuarial Review of the social insurance fund undertaken at five yearly intervals. The purpose of the review is to determine the extent to which the fund may be expected, in the long term, to meet the demands in respect of payment of benefits and other payments. The review takes account of the adequacy or otherwise of contributions to support benefits and other payments as well as other matters relevant to the current and future financial condition of the Fund. Preparation for the next Actuarial Review of the fund in respect of the year ending 31 December 2020 is underway. The review is expected to be completed and published in 2022. I trust that the foregoing sets out the current financial position of the social insurance fund as well as the initiatives underway with a view to ensuring its financial stability and sustainability in order for it to meet the significant income support challenges required of it in the years ahead.
