Results 21,941-21,960 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals Data (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The table provides the details which have been requested by the Deputy in respect of appeals in the past twelve months in so far as they are available. The table provides a breakdown by scheme area of the number of appeals registered and determined during the past twelve months, i.e. during the period from 1 May 2016 to 30 April 2017, along with a breakdown by scheme of the number of appeals...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Review (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: In line with a review of entitlement to rent supplement, the person concerned was requested on 13/2/17 to provide documentation to the Department confirming her combined household income including verification of income for all residents in her rental property. This documentation is still outstanding. A further request for the relevant documentation was issued to the person concerned on...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Applications (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The person concerned has been requested to provide the Department with an up-to-date lease agreement confirming her monthly rent payable. On receipt of this documentation, her rent supplement entitlement can be re-assessed accordingly. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Review (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Department has initiated a review of the weekly deduction in place in respect of this person's overpayment and correspondence has issued to the person concerned. The Department has suspended the weekly deduction for 21 days, pending receipt of the requested information. On receipt of this information, the department will determine the level of deduction to be applied in this case. I hope...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pension Provisions (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The person concerned is currently in receipt of a widow’s contributory pension at €198.50 per week, the maximum rate payable to a person under 66 years of age. She is also in receipt of a fuel allowance payment of €22.50 per week for the fuel season. The appropriate form will be forwarded to the Department of Work and Pensions in the UK immediately requesting that any...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Applications (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The person concerned applied for an increase in respect of an adult dependant with effect from 8/5/17. This increase has been awarded from the date of application. Payment will be made on 18/5/17 and will include any arrears due. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance (11 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The person concerned is currently entitled to and in receipt of the maximum personal rate of jobseeker’s allowance. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I confirm that my department received an application for Carer’s Allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 7 March 2017. It is a condition for receipt of a CA that the person being cared for must have a disability whose effect is that they require full-time care and attention. This is defined as requiring from another person, continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Registration of Births (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The re-registration of births to include the name of the father is provided for in Section 23 of the Civil Registration Act 2004. This section provides that a registrar may enter the name of the father in the Register of Births on receipt of a declaration by the parents of the child identifying a person as the father, or on production of a Court Order declaring a person to be the father of...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: JobPath Implementation (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Social Welfare (Consolidated) Act 2005, Part 3, Ch. 2, Sect. 141 specifies that participation in activation meetings arranged by or on behalf of the Minister for Social Protection is mandatory for those in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance. All people in receipt of Jobseekers payment must satisfy the conditions of being available for and genuinely seeking employment. They are also...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Mortgage Interest Supplement Scheme (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The original purpose of the mortgage interest supplement scheme was to provide short-term support to eligible people who are unable to meet their mortgage interest repayments in respect of a house which is their sole place of residence due to temporary unemployment or loss of earnings. The scheme was discontinued to new entrants from 1st January 2014. Customers availing of this support...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Public Services Card Provision (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: A Public Services Card is issued to an individual following a robust registration process to establish and verify the person’s identity. Part of the required evidence of identity for a non-EEA national to get a Public Services Card is a current valid passport. The person concerned claims to be unable to produce such a document at this time. As a consequence, my Department is...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I confirm that my department received an application for carer’s allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 29 March 2017. The application is currently being processed and once completed, the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome. In the meantime, both the person concerned and his spouse are in receipt of a weekly social welfare support. CA is a means-tested...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Maternity Benefit Data (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Maternity Benefit is a payment made for 26 weeks to employed and self-employed pregnant women who satisfy certain pay related social insurance (PRSI) contribution conditions in order to avoid the need for them to work pre and post-delivery of their baby. The original scheme was introduced in 1970 and was extended to include self-employed mothers with effect from June 1997. It is currently...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Appeals (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer on 20 April 2017, who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: School Meals Programme (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 251 and 252 together. The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food to some 1,460 schools and organisations benefitting over 200,000 children at a total cost of some €47.7 million in 2017. The funding for the scheme was increased this year, as part of Budget 2017, by an additional €5.7 million (almost 14% over the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Departmental Schemes (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: My Department administers over 70 schemes and services. It processes in excess of 1.7 million applications per annum; issues 81 million payments per year to 2.1 million customers and their families and provides over 300,000 direct engagements in support of labour market participation. Staff in the Department are engaged with customers throughout the entire lifecycle of their claim, including...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Fraud (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Department administers over 70 separate schemes and services, which affect the lives of almost every person in the State. In 2016, some 1.7 million applications for benefit, assistance and access to schemes were received and processed and over 82 million individual payments were made to people across all age groups and to employers. The scale of its operations and expenditure demand that...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Maternity Benefit (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Currently there are 2,850 claims for Maternity Benefit waiting to be processed. Some 1,450 of these have a maternity leave commencement date of 15 May or earlier. Maternity Benefit claims are processed in leave commencement date order. The average time to process a paper claim is 6 weeks. Processing claims by leave commencement date order ensures that those whose maternity leave is...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Delays (16 May 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment, made to persons who are providing full-time care and attention to a person who has a disability such that they require that level of care. A person can be considered to be providing full-time care and attention where the care recipient is in non-residential place of day care. As the care recipient of the person concerned is...