Results 3,601-3,620 of 16,746 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 636, 639, 652, 653, 662, 666, 670, 681, 687 and 728 together. Under the law as currently enacted, entitlement to a Widows, Widowers or Surviving Civil Partner’s Contributory pension is only available to a surviving partner who was party to a marriage or civil partnership. As the Deputies are aware, on 22nd January 2024, the Supreme Court delivered...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: Illness benefit is the primary short term income support provided by my Department to those who are unable to work due to illness of any type and who are covered by social insurance. Eligibility for illness benefit depends on the person’s PRSI record and class. The person must have made the required number of contributions under class A, E, H or P to qualify. In general,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from late September to April, at an estimated cost of €400 million in 2025. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. Only one allowance is paid per household. The criteria for Fuel Allowance are framed in order to direct the limited...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: Fuel Allowance is a means-tested payment to assist pensioners and other long-term social welfare dependent householders with their winter heating costs. The payment is made over the winter season - from September to April - at the weekly rate of €33 or, if preferred, by way of two lump sum instalments - one in September and one in January. Only one Fuel Allowance is payable per...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: Under the Department’s Compliance and Anti-Fraud Strategy, state pension scheme areas have a commitment to an annual level of control reviews and operates an ongoing continuous schedule of control and review activity. The objective is to ensure that customers continue to receive their correct rate of payment over the lifetime of their claim. Reviews can arise from customer...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The grants available under the Reasonable Accommodation Fund aimed to support the employment of disabled people in the open labour market and to make the workplace more accessible. The table below provides data on expenditure as requested on three of the Reasonable Accommodation Fund grants issued from 2020 to 2024. - Workplace Equipment Adaptation Grant Job...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision-making functions. The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: 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, a means test and the habitual residency conditions. Persons in receipt of DA can return to education and training. They have the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: 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, a means test and the habitual residency conditions. I confirm that my Department received an application for DA from the person...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The person concerned was in receipt of the state pension (non-contributory) from 12 October 2007. On 21 November 2018, following a review of entitlement the pension was stopped as the means of the person concerned exceeded the weekly statutory limit. An overpayment totaling €92,110.10 was raised for the period 12 October 2007 – 12 March 2015. A decision letter issued on 21...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The person concerned turned pension age on 7 October 2007. To qualify for the standard state pension (contributory) at this time, 260 full-rate paid contributions were needed. The records of my department show that the person concerned has 239 paid contributions. A letter issued on 19 November 2007 to advise the person concerned that they did not qualify for the standard state pension...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: 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, a means test and habitual residency conditions. I confirm that my department received an application for DA from the person concerned on...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. Means are any income belonging to the carer and their spouse / civil partner / cohabitant, property (except their own...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. I can confirm that two applications for CA were received from the person concerned on 23 August 2024. As part of the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Fuel Allowance is a contribution towards the energy costs of a household. The payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) is paid from late September to April to assist households with their energy costs. Fuel Allowance is a means-tested payment to assist householders on long term social welfare payments with their heating needs. The person concerned...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pensions Reform (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025 contains a commitment to develop a benchmarking approach for use in adjusting the value of State pension payments. The approach proposed by the Department, known as the smoothed earnings approach, was subsequently endorsed by the Pensions Commission. In 2022 following on from the work of the Pensions Commission, Government decided that the Minister...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. Two applications for CA were received from the person concerned. The person concerned was approved CA from 05 May...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 657 and 761 together. The main income supports to carers provided by the Department of Social Protection are Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant. Spending on these payments is expected to amount to over €1.9 billion in 2025. The Carer’s Allowance is the main...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizens Information Services (5 Feb 2025)

Dara Calleary: As you are aware, the Citizens Information Board (CIB) is the statutory body, under the aegis of my Department, that is responsible for supporting the provision of information, advice (including money and budgeting advice) and advocacy services on a wide range of public and social services. As you will be also aware, CIB delivers on this remit through providing some services directly and...