Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 11 November 2015

Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection

Social Welfare Bill 2015: Committee Stage

1:00 pm

Photo of Catherine ByrneCatherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have only one question on this amendment and I have listened to Deputies Ó Snodaigh, O'Dea and others. Who will make the final decision in a case? The Minister of State said that this will speed up the process. I agree with that because people have been left waiting too long. In the past, we said that nurses did not get the recognition they deserved when dealing with the people who were making decisions, whether in an accident and emergency department or even in a surgery. Thank God, that is changing. The fear people would have is that a nurse, who has been brought up to speed and has read the file, would make a recommendation to the appeals officer, or the deciding officer, who then makes the decision.

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