Results 20,041-20,060 of 21,588 for speaker:Denis Naughten
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: I thank the Secretary General for his opening statement. I will open it up to the floor now. Does Deputy Collins wish to start?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: Before Mr. McKeon comes back in, I want to say that in my experience here in this House over a long number of years, I have not received as many representations from civil servants in my life on any issue. Quite a number of pieces of correspondence have been received, or concerns have been expressed to many members, regarding the very points that Deputy Collins has articulated. I would like...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: Deputy Collins is on mute, and it is not too often she is mute.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: I accept the point. In practice, that is the practice at the moment. The difficulty is, and we heard this with regard to the points made by Deputy Ó Cuív on the invalidity pension, the letter of the law is the letter of the law. We have all had experiences where a more rigid interpretation of the law has been taken. I will come back to this later in my contribution. In that...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: We will hear from Mr. McKeon without interruption.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: Before answering Senator Wall's question on oral hearings being in-person or online, I have some figures in response to a parliamentary question for 2021 and the first ten months of 2022. In 2021, 9% of hearings were held in person, 40% over the phone and 50% online. In the first ten months of 2022, 6.5% were held in person, 32% over the phone and 61% online. Those are the figures from the...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: That has always been the case, but this is the first time we are putting it in writing. My concern is that what has been the practice to date is not what is in the text of the document in front of us. I have dealt with a case where a member of my staff was questioned by an appeals officer about being present at an oral hearing. My staff are well used to this and the oral hearing went...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: Yes. The Department of Health deals with medical cards.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: I have a couple of questions, and Deputy Ó Cuív wishes to contribute again. My first question relates to my last comment, the review of this statutory instrument and attendance at an oral hearing. Section 15(1) states: "The appellant shall ordinarily appear at the hearing in person and he or she may be accompanied by any member of his or her family, or, with the consent of the...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: I know that.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: I accept that, and the statistics are going the wrong way, but the point I am trying to make is that there probably should be a minimum threshold of oral hearings. I say this because it actually protects against the likes of examples raised by Deputy Ó Cuív and Senator Wall. Even purely from a training point of view there should be a minimum threshold of oral hearings. You get a...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: That is dead right. There had better be a good reason for refusing me, anyway.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: I appreciate that.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: They are.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: To add to what the Deputy has said, giving that right to a public representative or advocate will lead to more of these cases being dealt with online. People will be more comfortable dealing the cases online when they have an advocate who knows the law and regulations inside out and upside down. Having the online version is a big positive development but, as Deputy Ó Cuív says,...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: It is not.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Draft Regulations on the Operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office: Discussion (26 Apr 2023)
Denis Naughten: Damn right she would be.