Results 161-180 of 25,654 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (16 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Personal Public Service Number (PPSN) is the unique reference number for transactions between individuals and Government Departments and other public service providers, and forms part of the Public Services Identity (PSI) data set. Verification of a person’s identity is carried out during the SAFE Registration process following which a Public Services Card (PSC) is issued. A...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Schemes (16 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Treatment Benefit Scheme provides dental, optical and aural services to insured workers, the self-employed, retired people and their dependent spouse/partner who have the required number of social insurance (PRSI) contributions. In 2023, €44.68 million was paid in respect of approximately 1 million Optical Treatments. The process of conducting a review of the optical benefit...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (16 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: One-Parent Family Payment (OFP) is a payment for parents under 66 years who are parenting without the support of a partner and whose youngest child is under 7 years of age. Following your representation, an OFP application form was posted to the person concerned on 15/05/2024. The fully completed application form can be returned to the Newbridge Intreo Centre, Moorefield Road, Newbridge,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (16 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. Following a successful appeal, the person concerned was awarded Disability Allowance on...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (16 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. An ANP application can be made for assistance with funeral and burial expenses where there is an inability to pay these costs, in part or in full, by the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (16 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance (DA) is a weekly benefit for eligible individuals with a disability expected to last over a year, subject to medical assessment, means testing, and Habitual Residency conditions. The Department approved a DA application for this individual on 10 August 2022, granting the maximum personal rate and additional payment for qualified child from the same date. As previously...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (16 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) supports the improvement of rural roads and laneways that are not normally maintained by local authorities. As part of Our Rural Future, my government is committed to ensuring that LIS is funded into the future. Since the re-introduction of the Scheme in 2017, my department has allocated almost €170 million to local authorities under the scheme....

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: 1 o’clock As a former Minister with responsibility for business, I am somewhat aware of what the Deputy is referring to. I know the Irish Centre for High-End Computing, ICHEC, does a lot of work in that area. I cannot give the Deputy the detail as to why this has not happened but I am sure there is a good reason for it. I will ask the Minister to come back to the Deputy with...

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I have been to Cappoquin many times. It is a fine place and the Deputy is doing great work there. Funding of €3.3 million was announced for Ardmore and I know the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, was very keen that we would support it. That came under the rural regeneration development programme. The Gaeltacht areas get support when they put in applications. A Gaeltacht area...

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Wherever you draw the line when it comes to means tests, people will be either on this side of it or that side of it. There will always be winners and losers. No matter how high the bar goes, there will be losers. From June onwards, a carer can earn €900 per week, for a married couple, and it will not impact on their payment. That has been increased and kicks in in June. Coming up...

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I was here yesterday when Deputy Farrell raised this matter with the Taoiseach. He said he would raise the matter with the Minister and he agreed with what Deputy Farrell was saying. We are investing in apprenticeships to meet skills needs. The apprenticeship narrative in this country has completely changed and that is a good thing. If people are waiting, we will do everything we can to...

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I know the Tánaiste raises those matters with his counterpart, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on every occasion he meets him. The last meetings were on 18 and 29 April and they were raised at those meetings. He will continue to do so. I will raise the Deputy's concerns with him.

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy. As he said, today is Nakba Day. Israel marks its Independence Day and Palestine marks its Nakba Day. Both events are commemorated today. These dates serve as a reminder of the deep historical complexity that surrounds the current conflict. As I said earlier, the Tánaiste said this morning that we are going to recognise the state of Palestine by the end of this...

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank Deputy McGrath for raising this issue. I believe an employment regulation order is in place for the sector and I understand it is back in negotiation again.

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. We have improved the supports available to carers considerably in recent years. I know the Deputy welcomed the carer's pension that is now going to come into place. It is very important to recognise the huge sacrifices many have made in caring for their loved ones, particularly parents of children with disabilities. We have also expanded a...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. We commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings this Friday. The legacy of that atrocity lives on in the memory of many. In my own town of Monaghan, I know how it impacted on people. I acknowledge the people who lost their lives that day. The bomb in Monaghan went off outside Greacen's pub. I was just reading about two...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Like the Deputy, I have engaged with the families of the victims of this terrible atrocity. I know some of them extremely well. It has been a long journey and a difficult time for them. As the Tánaiste said, we need to look at this issue once again and try to get access to the files. I take on board what the Deputy said.

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Tánaiste said this morning that Ireland will recognise the state of Palestine by the end of this month. That is a very important step. As the Deputy said, EU member states and the international community have made it clear that an Israeli military operation in Rafah will inevitably lead to disastrous humanitarian consequences and the deaths of large numbers of innocent civilians....

Ceisteanna Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I acknowledge the presence of Finola Cassidy in the Gallery. The HSE has a senior manager who liaises with Irish thalidomide survivors. The HSE has carried out a consultation process with survivors to ascertain their health and social care needs now and into the future. The support for Irish survivors of thalidomide Bill was paused because of this consultation with the HSE. When that...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (15 May 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue, which I know is one about which he feels very strongly. He has advocated for Scoil Chormaic in Cashel previously. As I said earlier, we all have the experience, in representing our constituents, of meeting parents who are waiting too long for an assessment of their children's needs and for the therapies they need. We have to do all we can to...