Results 121-140 of 25,654 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

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

Heather Humphreys: The Roadmap for Social Inclusion contains a commitment to develop a benchmarking approach for use in adjusting the value of State pension payments. The approach proposed by the Department, known as the 'smoothed earnings' approach, was subsequently endorsed by the Pensions Commission. Government subsequently decided that the Department of Social Protection would, in submitting budget...

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

Heather Humphreys: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme is the safety net within the overall social welfare system in that it provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependents. Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments to help meet essential expenses that a person...

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

Heather Humphreys: The estimated full year cost of increasing the rate of payment by an additional €90.30, from €141.70 to €232 per week, is €73 million. This includes a proportionate increase for qualified adults and those on an age-reduced rate of Supplementary Welfare Allowance. This costing is based on the estimated average number of recipients in 2024, and is subject to...

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

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 391 to 393, inclusive, together. Jobseeker's Allowance is a payment to people who are unemployed but are available for and genuinely seeking full time employment. It is a means-tested payment, so a person's income must be below a certain amount in order to qualify for a Jobseeker's Allowance payment. For the week ending 12th May 2024, there were 13,719...

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

Heather Humphreys: My Department provides a range of employment services to support jobseekers in preparing for, securing, and sustaining employment. These services are either provided directly by my Department’s own staff, or on behalf of my Department through Intreo Partners and other service providers in both the community and voluntary and commercial sectors. Turas Nua is one of our Intreo Partners....

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

Heather Humphreys: The objective of the School Meals Programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of 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...

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

Heather Humphreys: The person concerned reached pension age on 6 March 2024. An application for state pension (contributory) was received in my Department on 27 March 2024. According to the records of my department, the person concerned has a total of 1,797 reckonable contributions from 1977 to 2024 giving a yearly average of 38. Based on this record, the state pension (contributory) has been awarded at the...

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

Heather Humphreys: The data requested by the Deputy on the number of recipients end April 2024 is shown in the following table. Scheme Number of recipients Accommodation Recognition Claim 10,770 Adoptive Parent Benefit 10 Back to Education Allowance 2,999 Back to Work Enterprise Allowance 1,887 ...

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

Heather Humphreys: The data requested by the Deputy for the number of recipients by welfare scheme in 2023 is shown in the following table. Scheme Average Median Maximum Minimum Accommodation Recognition Claim 6,740 6,612 9,003 4,586 Adoptive Parent Benefit 10 10 15 7 ...

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

Heather Humphreys: Based on 2019 data, pre the impacts of the Covid-19 Pandemic, it is estimated that the new Jobseeker's Pay-Related Benefit for fully unemployed jobseekers will cost approximately €130 million in a full year. Full year costs will not arise until 2026 as people who are in receipt of Jobseeker's Benefit when the new scheme commences will remain on that scheme until their claim is...

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

Heather Humphreys: The estimated full year cost of increasing the Increase for a Qualified Child by €1 for children under 12 years of age is €11.8m. The estimated full year cost of increasing the Increase for a Qualified Child by €1 for children aged 12 and over is €4.4m. It should be noted that these costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated...

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

Heather Humphreys: The estimated full-year cost of a €1 increase in each of the social insurance schemes, social assistance schemes, other weekly schemes and other scheme payments is €75.99 million as shown in the table below. It should be noted that these costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients. ...

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

Heather Humphreys: Age-related reduced rates apply to jobseekers aged 18 to 24 years and were introduced to prevent long-term welfare dependency by encouraging participation in training and employment programmes. Budget 2024 increased the maximum personal rate for a young adult to €141.70 per week from January 2024. There were 9,345 jobseekers on age related reduced rates in April 2024. The...

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

Heather Humphreys: The estimated full-year cost of introducing a child benefit double payment for one month of the year is €177.4 million. It should be noted that these costings are subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of the estimated numbers of recipients. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

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

Heather Humphreys: Referrals to the JobPath service ceased in June 2022 and the service is now in a run-off phase. The service is due to cease completely in June 2024. JobPath is a payment by results model and all set-up and day-to-day operational costs are borne by the companies. The companies are paid on the basis of performance and with the exception of the initial registration fee; payments are made...

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

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from late September to April, at an estimated cost of €382 million in 2024. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. Only one allowance is paid per household. The Fuel Allowance is paid to social welfare recipients such as pensioners,...

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

Heather Humphreys: The Carer’s Support Grant is a support for Carers paid once a year, in June, by the Department of Social Protection. The current rate of Carer's Support Grant is €1,850. The estimated full year cost of increasing the annual Carer's Support Grant by €1 is €0.2 million. This costing is based on the estimated average number of recipients in 2024, and is subject...

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

Heather Humphreys: My Department has made significant improvements to self-employed people's access to social insurance schemes in recent years, including extending access to invalidity pension, jobseeker's benefit and treatment benefit to the self-employed. These improvements are part of the Government’s stated aim of creating a supportive environment for entrepreneurship, including providing an...

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

Heather Humphreys: Disability allowance (DA) is a means-tested payment for people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66. The applicant must be suffering from an injury, disease, congenital deformity or physical or mental illness or defect which has lasted for one year or is expected to last for one year and, as a result of which, they are substantially restricted in...