Results 3,961-3,980 of 4,411 for speaker:Claire Kerrane

Social Welfare Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (9 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I welcome that the Minister has agreed and has clearly engaged with musicians and others. I hope that this amendment will make a difference to many workers and their families at this time.

Social Welfare Bill 2020: Second Stage (9 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Social Welfare Bill 2020. Typically, the Social Welfare Bill comes before the House in October and November each year. It is a shame that this Bill has come so late this year, particularly in view of the importance of the section which will repeal the pension age increases to 67 in January 2021 and to 68 in 2028, a move I welcome.This will provide...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Pandemic Supports to the Islands and Rural Ireland: Department of Rural and Community Development (9 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I thank the witnesses for their presentation. My first question concerns the report from the Western Development Commission. We are all well aware that people have moved west, sometimes back to where they grew up, since Covid hit and they have been able to work remotely, which has been great and positive. If there is to be an increase in the population in rural areas, such as Roscommon,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Pandemic Supports to the Islands and Rural Ireland: Department of Rural and Community Development (9 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: Will the rural action plan that was supposed to run from 2020 be published before the end of the year? I refer to the previous action plan for rural development from 2017 to 2019, which had a key commitment and target of job creation, which was very welcome. My issue with that, which is something I hope will be rectified in the new action plan, is that targets were met in job creation -...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Pandemic Supports to the Islands and Rural Ireland: Department of Rural and Community Development (9 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: It is unfortunate that while it is being finalised, it has been left to the last minute for people who will be concerned about this. I appreciate what our guests have said.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Programme for Government (8 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: The programme for Government commits to investigate the provision of domestic violence paid leave. The Irish Congress of Trade Unions, ICTU, has also called on the Government to ratify the International Labour Organisation, ILO, convention No. 190 on violence and harassment in the world of work. Article 18 of the accompanying recommendation details measures Governments should take to...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Covid-19 Pandemic (8 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: We welcome that there has been agreement on how the Covid vaccine will be administered. There needs to be the tightest possible contact between the Northern Executive and the Government. That will be critical in the roll-out of the vaccine, particularly in Border counties. I welcome the level of co-ordination that the Taoiseach has stated remains in place between him and the First Minister...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (8 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I wish to raise the decision of the European Committee of Social Rights, ECSR, and the Government's compliance with the right to equal pay, as well as the right to equal opportunities in the workplace. The Irish Federation of University Women, through the University Women of Europe, lodged a complaint within the framework of the collective complaints procedure with the ECSR as the monitoring...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (8 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: Yesterday, I launched Sinn Féin's proposals on dealing with household debt. Ahead of that, I reread some of the life stories shared with me as part of our campaign to highlight the issue of household debt. In one case, a person said the children were suffering. That person cannot sleep and the children are not let out to play for fear someone will come to knock on the door about a...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I again raise the issue of student accommodation refunds. I am dealing with a parent who has paid €5,000 to a private provider in Galway and whose son's course has since gone fully online. I met a representative of the students' union at the National University of Ireland, Galway, NUIG, last week, which is dealing with about 30 families seeking refunds from the same accommodation...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Public Service Numbers (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I welcome that 200 additional people have been moved into that service to reduce the backlog. As the Minister has acknowledged, there are huge difficulties. While I appreciate that getting money into people's pockets was the priority during Covid, the Minister also acknowledged that there are huge difficulties for people trying to get PPS numbers for various purposes, such as taking up a...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Public Service Numbers (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: 9. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if her attention has been drawn to long delays for persons applying for PPS numbers; the number of applications pending a decision; if additional resources have been put in place to assist with the backlog; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39997/20]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Public Service Numbers (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: This question asks the Minister whether she is aware of the long delays that people are experiencing when applying for personal public service, PPS, numbers. Can she give us the number of applications that are pending decision at the moment? Will she consider putting in additional resources in order to clear the backlog, or is this something she has already done?

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Public Service Numbers (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I thank the Minister. I, too, pay tribute to the staff, not only those who were reassigned to deal with the pandemic unemployment payment but also those who were left behind in smaller numbers than usual to deal with the likes of applications for PPS numbers. I have been inundated by contacts from people for the past number of months. We know that real issues are caused when people are...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: JobPath Programme (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: The Minister stated 64,000 people secured employment but she did not add that they did not sustain that employment for anywhere close to a year. In fact, the number who sustained it for a year is much lower. With regard to the cost per client, the Minister cited a figure of €873. `Will she confirm that the referral fee of €311 is paid every time a person is referred,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: JobPath Programme (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I welcome the fact that the Minister is to revert to me on the referral fee. If that fee is paid every time the same person is referred, which can be up to three times, and if there are more than 1,000 people in this category, as in this case, it means €10 million alone is given to the companies. If that is the case, as I believe, it does not represent value for money. I welcome...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: JobPath Programme (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: Yes. The question asks if the Minister will consider a review of the JobPath programme and her views on whether it has provided value for money for the State.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: JobPath Programme (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I am asking the Minister if there is a clause in the contract between her Department and the JobPath providers, who have been given another 12-month period, that allows her to reduce the fees being paid to those companies. The Minister made a few points. She spoke about value for money. I will give her a brief example in that regard. More than 1,000 people have been referred to JobPath...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: JobPath Programme (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: Will the Minister confirm that the referral fee of €311 is paid twice if a person is referred to the scheme twice, that is, in the case of more than 33,000 people who have been referred to the scheme twice? If they are getting the referral fee twice for those same people, that is a cost of more than €10 million. I ask the Minister again if she believes that is value for money?...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: JobPath Programme (3 Dec 2020)

Claire Kerrane: I am sorry, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, but not one single question I asked has been answered.