Results 19,061-19,080 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: The Senator raised these questions on Second Stage last Thursday. I assure her that time spent in receipt of the one-parent family payment will count in satisfying requirements for continued payment of qualified child increases where the child is in full-time education up to the age of 22 years. I agree with her that the fuel allowance is of great importance to many welfare recipients,...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: The payment of child benefit is separate from the issue of one-parent family payments. The conditionality attached to child benefit stands alone and the scheme applies up to the age of 18 years. It does not cross over to the issues raised by Senator Katherine Zappone. Child benefit ceases at the age of 18 years.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: Potentially, if they are in full-time education. The purpose of transferring to the transitional jobseeker's payment is to reflect what happens in other jurisdictions which have better child poverty outcomes and to provide a positive framework to encourage lone parents to return to education, training and employment once the youngest child is settled in school. The purpose of the...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: We discussed the situation in relation to retained firefighters on Second Stage in the House. Nationally, there are approximately 2,000 retained firefighters outside our larger cities in which there are typically full-time fire services. Retained firefighters are vitally important to their communities. Typically, these workers provide services in rural and less densely populated areas, but...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: Yes. The provision will commence as soon as we have the legislation in place. I am happy that after a very long period, we have been able to work out something that was causing genuine hardship. It is a critically important that this service should be available, particularly in rural communities. Perhaps the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government will change its...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: It applies essentially to public servants. Probably the better known examples of public servants who potentially have significant private income would be some of the people working in the medical and allied fields. They have one income stream from employment in the public service and might have another significant income stream, for example, from rents, other employments or offices they...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: Yes.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: It is not intended to so apply. As I previously advised the House, the advisory group on tax and social welfare is completing work on the provision of PRSI entitlements and contributions for self-employed persons. There has been quite a demand from self-employed persons to be able to apply for social insurance coverage. For a contribution of 4% for the required number of years they receive...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: Yes. As I said, these issues are all being examined in detail by the advisory group. We have the self-employed; we also have people in atypical employment with a very low number of contract hours. We have a series of issues regarding a properly funded and properly based social insurance system. As a country, we also have to adapt to changing work patterns. Many people who are retiring...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: No; I will take into account what the Senator has said. I brought in the partial capacity benefit in February 2012. It had been talked about for a long time and is a very positive change in the social welfare system. It is the norm in social welfare legislation to provide for an appeals mechanism at a point where a decision is being made; therefore, that is the purpose of the provision....

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: I shall be delighted to do that and I shall attend in person. I hope that the Senator will be inside the office rather than outside.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: I shall be delighted to provide the Senator with an invitation.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: Unsupported.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: The purpose of the section is to extend PRSI to the private income of public servants who have a public service income. For example, hospital consultants may have a significant private income. The last report by the VHI stated that 300 hospital consultants earned in excess of €100,000 from their private income via the VHI. For historical reasons the private income was not subject to...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: We are rolling out the new Intreo offices, which are integrated, around the country. We have a constraint. The OPW is our agent in getting new or refurbished premises. Understandably this takes some time. I had the pleasure, however, of being in the Killarney office recently with Senator Moloney, which is a new Intreo office and it really has transformed and improved the quality of...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: With regard to the first amendment, this is really a matter for the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation because the legislation in regard to employment terms and conditions is a matter for that Department. I assume this is the primary reason the amendment was ruled out of order. The Department of Social Protection took over the administration of the redundancy and insolvency...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: I will be coming back to this in any event as we are examining the legislation surrounding it. In the context of the budget, it is important to understand that in terms of the sustainability of Irish debt, one of the agreements made with the troika in 2010 was to review pension conditionality and pension ages. That review, which was agreed by the former Government in 2010 and formed part of...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed) (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: The practice in social welfare offices throughout the country in regard to older people is what I would call highly pragmatic. I have not heard of many cases of, as the Senator suggests, people being forced. In fact, I would say the one thing notable for its absence in the Irish social welfare system is anybody being forced. What we have is a highly organised support structure to enable...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Eligibility (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. The overall aim is to provide short-term assistance, and not to act as an alternative to the other social housing...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Youth Guarantee (19 Jun 2013)

Joan Burton: The Back to Work Enterprise Allowance already supports unemployed jobseekers wishing to engage in self-employment. It is generally considered that mentoring and advice – possibly delivered through start-your-own business training – can prove to be a valuable asset to a person starting out on their self-employment venture. In addition, as part of the Action Plan for Jobs, new...