Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 14 March 2013

Public Accounts Committee

2011 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 – Social Protection
Chapter 21 – Expenditure on Welfare and Employment Schemes
Chapter 22 – Welfare Overpayment Debts
Chapter 23 – Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Social Insurance Fund – Annual Accounts 2011

10:55 am

Ms Niamh O'Donoghue:

As the Deputy will be aware, we discussed this at length last year. The review was set up. The review is all but finalised and certainly I hope the Minister will be in a position to bring that to Government shortly. The view will treat a number of different things - administrative process, medical process and some of the policy issues that would have been signalled. Certainly any improvements in the administrative process that have been flagged over the course of the review we are putting in place. We are taking on board the various comments of all the stakeholders because as the Deputy will be aware that review included a number of representatives from the different groups. The review process involved talking to everybody in receipt of DCA and providing for public submissions, so it is a very comprehensive review.