Results 1,021-1,040 of 16,601 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Seanad: Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025: Second Stage (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: I apologise. I have been called to the Dáil for a vote.

Seanad: Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025: Second Stage (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: I will be back.

Seanad: Social Welfare (Bereaved Partner’s Pension and Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025: Second Stage (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: I first apologise to the House for the suspension. There are no pairs available. I have great respect for the House and did not wish to interrupt Senator Craughwell's contribution and the business of the House. I thank all those who participated in this debate for their contributions. While there are individual differences on aspects of the Bill, it is clear there is broad support for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is payable to a parent / guardian in respect of a child aged under 16 who has a severe disability requiring continual or continuous care and attention substantially in excess of the care and attention normally required by a child of the same age and where the level of the child's disability is such that the child is likely to require this level of care and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Programme for Government has clearly set out a timeline which commits to significantly increasing the income disregards for Carer’s Allowance in each Budget with a view to phasing out the means test during the lifetime of the Government. This is a major change to the Carer's Allowance and to the Irish social welfare system generally.  It is important that we make progress...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Domiciliary Care Allowance is a monthly non-means-tested payment of €360 to a parent or guardian for a child aged up to 16 who has a severe disability. The child must require care and attention substantially greater than that required by other children of the same age. Domiciliary Care Allowance stops being paid when a child reaches 16 years of age. This aligns with the age of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Bereavement Grant, which was a once-off payment for funeral costs, was discontinued in January 2014. In this context, it is worth noting that there are other supports available for people following bereavement which provide more significant support than the former grant. These include the Widowed or Surviving Civil Partner grant, which is a once-off payment of €8,000 available...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department provides a suite of income supports for those unable to work due to illness or disability. These include insurance-based schemes, based on Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) contributions, and means-tested social assistance schemes. The primary social assistance scheme for people who are blind or visually impaired is the Blind Pension, which is a means-tested payment, and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Isolation (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025 is a whole of Government strategy, with a five-year timeframe, that aims to reduce consistent poverty to 2% or less, and to make Ireland one of the most socially inclusive countries in the EU. The Roadmap, published in January 2020, is an overarching statement of Government strategy, which acknowledges the range of sectoral plans already in place...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Irish Language (9 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Pacáiste Tacaíochta Teaghlaigh is a language pack provided free of charge to families who currently raise their children through Irish or who wish to do so. Historically my Department distributed the packs directly to families who requested it. This initiative was then transferred to the organisation Tuismitheoirí na Gaeltachta in 2019. Following sanction of most...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Expenditure (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 555 and 556 together. The Department has not incurred any Ministerial costs within these expenditure categories for the years 2015 to 2025 inclusive.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Advertising (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department administers over 100 separate schemes and services, which affect the lives of almost every person in the State. We are committed to ensuring that members of the public are fully aware of the welfare supports and services that are available to them, and that they are notified of any scheme changes which may affect them. Public information and advertising campaigns are an...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Expenditure (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Details of the amounts spend on media training from 2015 to 2025 is set out below. Year Company Cost (excl VAT) No of Staff Staff Grades 2019 Carr Communications €550 2 1 Principal Officer & 1 Assistant Principal Officer 2025 Drury €1,260 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Expenditure (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department has not employed or engaged any external consultants for media consultancy from 2015 to 2025. The Department's Press Office deals with all media queries and public relations matters I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Maternity Benefit is paid for 26 weeks to employed and self-employed women who are on Maternity Leave and who satisfy certain pay related social insurance (PRSI) contributions. Government has provided over €295 million for the scheme in 2025. Maternity Benefit is payable at the weekly rate of €289 and was increased by €15 from 1 January 2025. If a person has...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (8 Jul 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. An application for CA was received from the person concerned on 19 July 2024. It is a condition for receipt of CA...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Expenditure (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The total number of Purchase Orders processed in 2023 was 3,147 with a value of €76,552,530.31. Of these, 2,650 purchase orders were not included in published reports.  The value of these purchase orders was €13,921,575.63. 497 were included in published reports as they exceeded the €20,000 threshold.  The value of these purchase orders was...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The objective of the School Meals Programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. The number of children in Carlow and Kilkenny currently availing of the free school meals scheme and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Insurance (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Where an individual is employed in an employment to which the modified rate applies (PRSI Class B/C/D), then any additional self-employment is categorised as “Excepted Self-Employment”. The relevant legislation governing this is paragraph 5 of Part 3 of Schedule 1 of the Social Welfare Consolidated Act 2005. From 01 January 2013 to date, PRSI Class ‘K9’ applies...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Contracts (8 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Programme for Government contains a commitment to introduce the Automatic Enrolment (AE) Retirement Savings System. The aim of introducing AE is to address the pension coverage gap that exists in Ireland and to provide workers with greater comfort and security regarding their retirement savings. I recently announced the system, to be known by its brand name, 'My Future Fund', will...