Results 3,141-3,160 of 5,587 for speaker:Kevin Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Private Rented Accommodation Provision (5 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 59, 61 and 95 together. The rent supplement scheme provides 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. There are approximately 71,500 rent supplement recipients for which the Government has provided...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Homeless Persons Supports (5 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 64 and 66 together. The Department’s role with regard to persons who are homeless is mainly income maintenance. Under the social welfare system, homeless people have entitlements to the full range of social welfare schemes, including supplementary welfare allowance (SWA), subject to the normal qualifying conditions. Where a person is residing...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Exceptional Needs Payment Data (5 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Under the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, the Department may make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off and unforeseen expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. The Government has provided €27.9 million for the ENP scheme in 2015. There is no automatic entitlement to a payment. The...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Job Initiatives (5 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The Government’s primary strategy to reduce long-term unemployment is through policies to create the environment for a strong economic recovery by promoting competitiveness and productivity. Economic recovery will underpin jobs growth. This strategy has been succeeding, with an increase of over 80,000 in employment over the last 2 years. The long-term unemployment rate peaked at 9.5%...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Live Register Data (5 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The Government’s primary strategy to reduce unemployment has been through policies to create the environment for a strong economic recovery by promoting competitiveness and productivity. Economic recovery will underpin jobs growth. This strategy is working. Employment has risen by about 80,000 in the last two years. The Government’s Pathways to Workstrategy for 2015 prioritises...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Eligibility (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 169, 174, 177 and 207 together. The rent supplement scheme provides 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. There are approximately 70,700 rent supplement recipients for which the Government has...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Employment Support Services (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: A Departmental review of employment support schemes made a range of recommendations, including the need for a rationalisation of current schemes to support jobseekers. The schemes reviewed included the training employment support grant (TESG) and the technical assistance and training scheme (TATS). Further work undertaken took account of developments in the supports available to jobseekers...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Services Programme (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The community services programme (CSP) is designed to address gaps in the delivery of key local services, to tackle disadvantage and to ensure that community facilities are utilised. It provides valuable resourcing for service delivery undertaken by not-for-profit companies and cooperatives in communities around the country. Some 2,800 people are supported in employment by the programme...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I will be brief. In case Senator David Norris did not notice we accepted the first amendment from an independent Senator in respect of the review.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The first amendment that was accepted was in respect of the review.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I compliment Senator Moloney on her amendment which I will bring forward on Report Stage. Senator Bacik highlighted the fact that there will also be alternative reviews. That will be done. At this stage I am not proposing to accept the amendments other than to say that providing a birth certificate is a significant and serious step by the State. The purpose of this legislation is to...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: This amendment seeks to correct a grammar error.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I thank everybody for their contributions. In response to Senator Zappone, I do not believe somebody will lose a driving licence, as she outlined, but I will check that and come back to her to be fully clear. There is no doubt that drafting this Bill has been very complex. It has also been very challenging constitutionally in respect of marriage. In response to Senator Craughwell, it is...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I am happy to inform the House that I have agreement from the Minister for Justice and Equality that the implementation Bill will include provisions to amend this legislation to remove the requirement to be single once the referendum is passed. We are not going to wait for a social welfare Bill. If the referendum is passed, it will be included in the implementation Bill so that will,...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Amendment No. 32 seeks to amend section 18 to replace a reference to "mother and father" with "a parent". If we were to accept this amendment, it would upset the concept of guardianship as currently applied; therefore, there would be an unintented consequence. We need to be cautious in that regard. I do not propose to accept the amendments based on the principles set out in section 17(1)...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: There is no facility in the civil registration system to deal with the issue. In respect of the Australian model, I have had engagement outside the House on the passport elements and undertaken to engage with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade which issues passports to see whether we can find a solution. Australia is the country that has done this. I have not had an opportunity to...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I want to put the House on notice that there will be a technical amendment to come afterwards. The sections of the Bill are linked in regard to wills.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: For information purposes, I want to put the House on notice that there will be a small change to section 19 on Report Stage. Where the section currently refers to when "the Act" comes into operation, the amendment will propose to change that to when "the section" comes into operation.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I do not propose to accept this amendment as it is unnecessary. Section 26 of the Bill inserts a new section 30C in the Civil Registration Act 2004. A statutory instrument will be made under section 30C(5) of that Act in regard to the certificate drawn from the register of gender recognition. The statutory instrument will in its schedule include a certificate setting out the entire content...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: This is a very wide-ranging provision, which would give rise to significant and unforeseen implications across both the public and private sectors and would, therefore, require further detailed consideration, including consultation with all of those actually and potentially impacted by the provision. The Bill already contains provisions on maintaining confidentiality. In regard to the...