Results 26,901-26,920 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Expenditure (7 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: Maintaining the rate of the State pension and other core payments is critical in protecting people from poverty. Expenditure on pensions at approximately €6.5 billion is the largest element of expenditure in the Department in the Estimate for 2014, representing approximately 33% of overall expenditure. Due to demographic changes the Department’s spending on older people is...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Living Alone Allowance (7 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The Living Alone Allowance (LAA) is an additional payment of €7.70 per week made to people aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments, including State pensions, and who are living alone. It is also available to people who are less than 66 years of age, living alone and in receipt of disability allowance, invalidity pension, incapacity supplement or...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance Eligibility (7 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 142 and 143 together. The estimated full year cost of allowing persons in receipt of jobseeker’s allowance for excess 312 days (1 year) to retain increases in respect of qualified children for a period of one year after they exit the scheme to employment is some €22m. The estimated full year cost of a scheme of support, payable at a rate of...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: IBEC Membership (7 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The statutory bodies operating under the aegis of the Department of Social Protection are the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Authority, the Office of the Pensions Ombudsman and the Social Welfare Tribunal. None of the bodies under the aegis of the Department are paid up members of IBEC. Citizens Information Board (CIB) In 2011, CIB made payments to IBEC amounting to...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Departmental Schemes (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The dental benefit scheme continues to provide for free annual examinations to qualifying customers who fulfil the PRSI eligibility criteria. The free dental examination has been retained in order to encourage people to continue to attend for check-ups and to ensure that good oral health is maintained. Any changes to the dental or other treatment benefit schemes would have to be considered...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Commissions of Investigation (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: There were no commissions of investigations, inquiries or similar investigations established by my Department in the past 12 months. None are being considered for establishment in the coming 12 months.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance Scheme Eligibility (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: A claim for back to school clothing and footwear allowance from the person concerned was processed on 21 July 2014. The claim was refused as her assessable income exceeds the weekly income limit for a family with 2 children, which is €593.40. The person concerned has an income from her TUS scheme, which combined with her spouse’s income leave her exceeding the weekly limit for...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Public Services Card (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The Public Services Card (PSC) has been introduced to enable individuals to gain access to public services more efficiently and with a minimum of duplication of effort, while at the same time preserving their privacy to the maximum extent possible. The PSC is designed to replace other cards within the public sector such as the free travel pass and the social services card and to make it easy...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Appeals (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 8 September 2014. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When these papers have been received from the Department, the appeal in question will be...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Respite Care Grant Expenditure (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: I am very aware that the reduction in the respite care grant in Budget 2013 proved difficult for carers. However, in order to protect the core weekly payments which people receive, including disability payments, pensions and carer’s allowance, the Government had to look very carefully at other additional payments, including the respite care grant. This approach to protecting core...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Household Benefits Scheme (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The overall concern of Government in Budget 2014 and previous Budgets has been to protect the primary social welfare rates. Expenditure on pensions at approx. €6.5 billion is the largest block of expenditure in the Department in the Estimate for 2014, representing approx. 33% of overall expenditure. Because of demographic changes the Department’s spending on older people is...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Domiciliary Care Allowance Payments (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The person concerned was notified on the 30th September 2014 that her domiciliary care allowance (DCA) appeal was successful. DCA is paid monthly. Payment of the allowance, along with arrears due, will be available in the customer’s nominated bank account on 21 October 2014 and on the third Tuesday of each month thereafter. Following the award of DCA payment of Respite Care grant...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Eligibility (8 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: Following a recent review, the clients Rent Supplement of €750 per month was found to be in excess of the maximum limit of €600 applicable to her circumstance and family composition in Wicklow. The client has been requested to secure a rent reduction or source alternate accommodation within the maximum limits. The client's Rent Supplement will remain in payment until 31...

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: The Deputy will appreciate that I am not at liberty at this point to disclose details of the budget.

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: I cannot indicate that to the Deputy but I will say that there are extensive and intensive ongoing discussions between the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Department of Finance and the Minister for Health, Deputy Varadkar, and the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch. On the area of mental health funding, as is well known, the funding provided over the period of this...

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: With regard to what has happened in terms of mental health services and the development of policy, any fair person would say, as do many of the experts in the field, that we now have and have evolved a set of world-class standards on the way to proceed on which there has been widespread agreement, whether among the groups and organisations the Deputy referred to or among the experts. The...

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: Two issues arise in that regard. First, we only want to use in-bed facilities, particularly when dealing with vulnerable adolescents, as an absolute last resort. I know from personal experience, and I am sure the Deputy knows also, that if we can provide those services in the community, that is the best way to proceed. There is now a bed count to ensure that if the type of young person the...

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: Why, in the document it published yesterday, is Sinn Féin threatening the very same families who may inherit a modest family home worth between €250,000 and €300,000, with €48,000, another mortgage, which they will have to take out in order to inherit their family home? Will Sinn Féin please get real on the kind of pain it has outlined for ordinary hard-working...

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: We have set out a structure in which families will have to pay over the next two years, at a maximum, the assessed charges. In addition, in the budget there will be, for family households, which are by and large the most vulnerable households, a water services support payment of €100 per annum. That will go a significant way towards meeting and defraying the cost of water charges for...

Leaders' Questions (9 Oct 2014)

Joan Burton: We would need to go back to the 1920s or 1930s to find the kind of structure Sinn Féin flew the flag for yesterday.