Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Thursday, 7 December 2017
Public Accounts Committee
Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund
9:00 am
Pat Deering (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I welcome Mr. McKeon and his team. I would like to focus on the appeals process. I was very taken by his answer to my colleague that a number of clients will hold back information for the appeal. That statement sounds very unusual. I would be of the opinion that someone who is applying for a particular scheme - whether a disability or an invalidity scheme - would want to get it over the line as quickly as possible rather than hold back information that would be beneficial to his or her application and it taking at least six months to complete the process. That does not make sense.