Results 21-40 of 15,432 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The cost of extending the One-Parent Family Payment by five years, until the youngest child reaches age 12, is difficult to accurately estimate as it is challenging to predict the future movement of customers into and between schemes and the subsequent cost implications relating to secondary benefits. Some people whose youngest child is aged between 7 and 12 may be in receipt of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: While the Deputy does not specify an amount by which to increase Living Alone Allowance, currently €22 per week, in order to provide an estimated annual cost to answer the question, we have set out the estimated full year cost of increasing the Living Alone Allowance by €1 per week from €22 to €23 per week, which is €13.1 million. This costing is based...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department's payment systems do not disaggregate expenditure by recipient age; therefore I regret that we cannot provide accurate information in the format that the Deputy has requested.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children up to the age of 16 years. Currently, the payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their 19th birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. To receive Child Benefit in Ireland, parents must be habitually resident in the State. Applicants for International Protection do not satisfy...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The State Pension (Contributory) (SPC) is funded from the Social Insurance Fund through the contributions paid by workers. The rate of payment reflects the number of social insurance contributions paid over a working life. Eligibility for SPC is based on a number of criteria:Being aged 66 or over.Having entered the Social Insurance system 10 years before you intend to drawdown your...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's Benefit (CARB) is a payment made to insured people who leave the workforce or reduce their working hours to care for a child or an adult in need of full-time care and attention. To qualify the carer must satisfy PRSI conditions, employment conditions, show that they are providing full-time care and attention and must show that the care recipient requires full-time care and...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Departmental Programmes (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The current LEADER programme is co-financed by the European Commission under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), through the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development. It is connected to Objective 8 of the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP). The total amount of funding allocated to LEADER for the period of 2021-2027 is €250 million, maintaining the level of funding of the previous...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Rural Schemes (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) is a key support for rural communities in improving non-public roads and laneways that are not usually maintained by local authorities. Since its reintroduction in 2017, the government has provided almost €170 million to local authorities under the Scheme. The Programme for Government commits to the provision of additional funding for the LIS. As...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Budgets (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Matters relating to foster care are the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality. This Government acknowledges the important role that carers, including foster carers, play and remains fully committed to supporting them. The State Pension (Contributory) system provides a range of measures to recognise caring periods outside of paid employment,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Schemes (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Government was delighted to introduce a new baby grant of €280 as part of Budget 2025. This new payment will assist parents and adoptive parents with the costs associated with new babies and newly adopted children. It will provide additional financial support to a family to ensure adequate resources and that the material needs of a child are met. The Newborn Baby Grant is a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is a service 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: Departmental Correspondence (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Jobseeker's Pay-Related Benefit scheme was introduced at the end of March this year. This new social insurance-based income support has replaced the Jobseeker's Benefit scheme for people who have become fully unemployed since the commencement of the scheme on 31 March and who meet the statutory conditions for the scheme. The legislation underpinning the scheme provides that specific...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children up to the age of 16 years. Currently, the payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their 19th birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. To receive Child Benefit in Ireland, parents must be habitually resident in the State. Applicants for International Protection do not satisfy...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Application Delays (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all of its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are made as quickly as possible. Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) new claim processing activity is prioritised on an ongoing basis with particular focus on processing times, to ensure a timely service to applicants. ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Reviews (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Department of Social Protection provides a range of income supports to carers, which includes Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance, and the Carer’s Support Grant. The combined spending on these payments is estimated at over €1.9 billion in 2025. The main objective of these carer payments is to provide income support to those whose...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Uniforms (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 513 and 540 together. This Government acknowledges the important role that carers, including foster carers, play and remains fully committed to supporting them. That is why I was really pleased to announce that Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance eligibility is being extended to include children for whom Foster Care Allowance is being paid. The...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Free Travel Passes (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Free Travel scheme provides free travel on the main public and private transport services for those eligible under the scheme. The Free Travel Scheme is available to all persons aged over 66 and those under the age of 66 on certain qualified payments, who are living legally and permanently in the State. The scheme permits those who are eligible to travel for free on most CIE public...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Bus Services (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Free Travel scheme provides free travel on the main public and private transport services for those eligible under the scheme. The Free Travel Scheme is available to all persons aged over 66 and those under the age of 66 on certain qualified payments, who are living legally and permanently in the State. The scheme permits those who are eligible to travel for free on most CIE public...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is a service 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: Parental Leave (1 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 517 and 533 together. My colleague the Minister for Health has lead responsibility for the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act 2024. This complex and far-reaching legislation encompasses the regulation for the first time of a wide range of practices undertaken in this jurisdiction, including domestic altruistic surrogacy, but also provides for the...