Dáil debates

Thursday, 28 May 2020

Estimates for Public Services 2020 (Resumed)

 

6:15 pm

Photo of Regina DohertyRegina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I was not saying that we are not increasing supports and money for rent supplement because we absolutely are. Today's Revised Estimates see that figure go up to €70 million. However, it is not our job to take over if the local authorities around the country are not providing HAP because they also have a job to do. HAP was going up and rent supplement was coming down and we are only stepping into the breach now because hundreds of thousands of people have found themselves stuck for the past couple of months and we will continue to do that. That does not allow the local authorities to stop doing what they should be doing with regard to private services and HAP.

We run advertising campaigns every single week.

All of the information of every service to all of the hundreds of thousands of people who never thought they would find themselves unemployed, temporarily or otherwise, is on our website, which is mywelfare.ie. There are big blocks which show people everything they are entitled to and we direct people to it from our Twitter account and all the advertisements that we are producing in newspapers and radio stations every day.

On the maternity payments, to be honest with Deputy Catherine Murphy, we do not need anybody to tell us it was discriminatory. It was not done intentionally and it was discriminatory and needed to be fixed. I hope, after tomorrow, every scenario that the Deputy has pointed out will be fixed. Otherwise, what is the point of half-fixing something? It has to be entirely fixed. We will know, obviously, once I see the memorandum tomorrow. I thank the Deputy.

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