Results 21-40 of 16,380 for are speaker:Heather Humphreys

Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Systems Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I move amendment No. 1: In page 10, between lines 1 and 2, to insert the following: “ “contributing participant” shall be construed in accordance with section 57;”. These amendments are purely technical in nature. They are standardising the language in the Bill and improving its coherence. They have been identified by the Office of the Parliamentary...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Free Travel scheme is available to people over 66 years and to people in receipt of certain social welfare payments who are under 66 years. From 29th July 2024, Free Travel is also available to persons who are medically certified as unfit to drive for a period of at least 12 months. Free Travel recipients must be permanently resident in the State. The scheme permits travel for free on...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. The desire to process appeals quickly has to be balanced with the competing demand to ensure that decisions are consistent and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Carer'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. Means are any income belonging to the carer and their spouse/civil partner/cohabitant including property (except their...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Illness Benefit is the primary short term income support provided by my Department to those who are unable to work due to illness of any type and who are covered by social insurance. Eligibility for illness benefit depends on the person's PRSI record and class. People must have made the required number of contributions in class A, E, H or P to qualify. In general, self-employed people...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Contracts (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...and advice) through delivering reports, studies, assessments, recommendations, proposals, etc. that contribute to decision making or policy development. Details as requested by the Deputy are set out below. 2023 Consultant Purpose Value Social Finance Limited Consultancy for employment service for people with a disability ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: .... People over the age of 70 receive the Household Benefits Package, with one package provided per household. The package is also available to people living in the State aged 66-69 years who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments or who satisfy a means test. The package is available to some people under the age of 66 who are in receipt of certain welfare type payments. ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...members of an Garda Síochána, the fire service and the prison service, who may retire from their work after 30 years of service. Matters relating to pension provision for public servants are for my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform.

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Tidy Towns (22 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...of the competition, and with our highly skilled and competent panel of adjudicators. My Department's role is to facilitate the administration of the adjudication process only, but my officials are not actively involved in the formal adjudication of competition entries. Adjudication of competition entries typically takes place during the months of June and July over an intensive 6 week...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) scheme, my Department may make an Additional Needs Payment (ANP) to help meet essential expenditure which an eligible person could not reasonably be expected to meet from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to Exceptional Needs Payments (ENPs) and Urgent Needs Payments (UNPs), and certain supplements to assist with...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Following the expansion of the programme in recent years, some 2,600 schools and organisations, covering 443,000 children are now eligible for funding. As part of this significant expansion plan, all remaining primary schools were contacted last year and requested to submit an expression of interest form if their...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Diet supplement, administered under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, is payable to qualifying persons, in receipt of the supplement prior to February 2014, who have been prescribed a special diet because of a specified medical condition. There are currently 1,021 people in receipt of diet supplement. A review of the costs of healthy eating and specialised diets by the Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Following the expansion of the programme in recent years, some 2,600 schools and organisations, covering 443,000 children are now eligible for funding. Funding under the School Meals Programme can be provided for breakfast, snack, cold lunch, dinner, hot school meals and afterschool clubs and is based on a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Carer'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 confirm that an application for CA from the person concerned was received on 23 February 2024. Further information in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Following the expansion of the programme in recent years, some 2,600 schools and organisations, covering 443,000 children are now eligible for funding. As part of this significant expansion plan, all remaining primary schools were contacted last year and requested to submit an expression of interest form if...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 8 April...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Websites (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance (DA) is a weekly allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66. This disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to a medical assessment, means test and Habitual Residency conditions. My Department is committed to making services and information accessible to all,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: International Protection (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: My department administers the Daily Expenses Allowance which is paid to international protection applicants who reside in, or are waiting for, accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Services. The current weekly rates of payment are €38.80 per adult and €29.80 per child. An increased rate of €113.80 per week for an adult applies where a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Illness benefit is the primary short term income support provided by my Department to those who are unable to work due to illness of any type and who are covered by social insurance. Eligibility for illness benefit depends on the person’s PRSI record and class. The person must have made the required number of contributions under Class A, E, H or P to qualify. In general,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (21 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...committed to: (i) set a formal benchmark of 34% of average earnings for State pension contributory payments, and (ii) Institute a process whereby future changes in pension rates of payment are explicitly linked to changes in the consumer price index and average wages. The approach proposed by the Department, known as the smoothed earnings approach, was subsequently endorsed...