Results 29,781-29,800 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Eligibility (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The person concerned was claiming one parent family payment from October 2007 until October 2013, when her claim was disallowed following an investigation which determined that her means were in excess of the statutory limit for receipt of the payment. This decision was appealed to the Social Welfare Appeals Office (SWAO); however her appeal was disallowed by that office in April 2014. A...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The means test for social assistance schemes takes account of all cash income which income the claimant has as well as the yearly value of property (other than the home) and capital which a claimant owns. The key issue, for means testing purposes, in the case of trust funds is the ownership of such funds. Trust funds which are owned by a child of a claimant are not assessable in order to...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Departmental Expenditure (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 105 and 106 together. The information requested by the Deputy is provided in the table: - - Actual expenditure Actual expenditure Actual expenditure Actual expenditure - 2015 Revised Estimate Jan 2015 Feb 2015 Mar 2015 Year to date end of Mar 2015 - €000 €000 €000 €000 €000 Overall Department of Social Protection...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: Average appeal processing times for 2014 and 2015 broken down by all social welfare scheme types are outlined in the tables below. Appeal processing times peaked in 2011 when the average time for an oral hearing was 52.5 weeks and for a summary decision was 25.1 weeks. In 2012 the average processing time for an oral hearing dropped to 39.5 weeks and the time for a summary decision increased...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pension Provisions (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The State pension (contributory) is a very valuable benefit and is the bedrock of the Irish pension system. Therefore, it is important to ensure that those qualifying have made a sustained contribution to the Social Insurance Fund over their working lives. This is particularly important given the challenge that increased longevity is posing for the future sustainability of the State...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: Average appeal processing times for 2014 and 2015 broken down by all social welfare scheme types are outlined in the tables below. Appeal processing times peaked in 2011 when the average time for an oral hearing was 52.5 weeks and for a summary decision was 25.1 weeks. In 2012 the average processing time for an oral hearing dropped to 39.5 weeks and the time for a summary decision increased...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) Applications (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The table shows the total number of state pension (contributory) applications received from January 2014 to April 2015, together with a breakdown of decision outcomes during that period as follows: Period Claims received Claims awarded Claims disallowed Jan– Dec 2014 40,212 27,591 8,205 Jan – April 2015 10,795 6,299 2,572 State pension (contributory) is an insurance based...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that legislation provides that where an Appeals Officer is of the opinion that an appeal can be properly determined without an oral hearing, he or she may determine the appeal summarily on the basis of the documentary evidence provided. If an appellant requests an oral hearing, that request will generally be granted unless the Appeals...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: Almost 70,000 lone parents are currently supported by the one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme at an estimated cost to the Department of approximately €607 million in 2015. However, despite considerable investment, the scheme has not succeeded in preventing lone parents from being significantly more at risk of consistent poverty than the population as a whole. The purpose of...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Data (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The information requested by the Deputy is detailed in the tabular statements. Disability Allowance Year Registered Awarded Rejected Pending at period end 2010 21,409 8,306 10,316 6,880 2011 24,264 9,246 14,116 6,999 2012 25,887 10,400 14,519 7,775 2013 20538 12497 14,691 5,022 2014 21,071 13,876 12,621 6,058 31 March 2015 5,252 4,112 4,925 4,489 Invalidity Pension Year...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Deserted Wife's Benefit Data (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The Deserted Wife's Benefit scheme has been closed since 1997. The number of recipients eligible for receipt of payment in the past five years is set out in the table. There has been no change in the eligibility criteria for the scheme in that time. 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 8,372 8,071 7,753 7,457 7,228

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Unemployment Benefits (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The information requested by the Deputy at the end of December in each of the years 2011 to 2013 and at the end of March 2015 is detailed in the tabular statement. It should be noted that the county level statistics indicate the number of people signing-on for payment at an office located in the county indicated. As the catchment area of many local offices cross county borders this data is...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Welfare Services (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: Community Welfare Services in the South Kildare are rationalised to three main centres; Naas, Newbridge and Athy. The service is accessible by telephone call, followed up by appointments and home visits as required. Telephone lines are open at all timesand all clients will have their call returned within one working day. This eliminates the need to travel to offices/health centres and wait...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Youth Unemployment (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The Government's primary strategy to tackle youth unemployment is through policies to create the environment for a strong economic recovery by promoting competitiveness and productivity. Economic recovery will underpin jobs growth and the availability of productive employment for young people. In addition, there is a wide range of employment services, along with programmes of training...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: Jobseeker's Allowance is payable to persons who are aged over 18 and under 66 years of age and who are: -Unemployed; -Capable of work; -Available and genuinely seeking work; -Satisfy a means test; and -Meet the Habitual Residence Condition It is not conditional for a person to have English language proficiency in order to receive Jobseekers Allowance. However, in some instances as part of...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Public Sector Staff Recruitment (6 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The information requested by the Deputy in relation to recruitment since the partial lifting of the embargo into the Department of Social Protection and the Agencies under the remit of the Department is outlined in the table. The Agencies that operate under the aegis of my Department are the Pensions Authority, the Citizens Information Boards (CIB) and the Pensions Ombudsman. ...

Leaders' Questions (7 May 2015)

Joan Burton: The most recent CSO figures show that, thankfully, a lot of people are going back to work, and the biggest way to improve any family's income is to go back to work. Recalling reductions in social welfare, I do not think people will ever forget that Fianna Fáil cut people's social welfare by €16 to €17 a week. That is its legacy, what it has to live with and what it has to...

Leaders' Questions (7 May 2015)

Joan Burton: People on social welfare pay their bills and meet their household commitments just like everybody else. We know that people struggle to pay, but to imply that somehow or other those in receipt of social welfare do not pay their bills is a slander.

Leaders' Questions (7 May 2015)

Joan Burton: After the Deputy and his party had bankrupted the country, his special contribution to poor people, as a member of the Government, was to reduce the minimum wage by €1 an hour.

Leaders' Questions (7 May 2015)

Joan Burton: He did that, together with his colleagues. It was a low blow-----