Results 3,441-3,460 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Departmental Schemes: Departmental Schemes (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 20, 56 and 71 together. The free travel scheme is available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over. All carers in receipt of carer's allowance and carers of people in receipt of constant attendance or prescribed relative's allowance, regardless of their age, receive a free travel pass. It is also available to people under age 66 who are in...

Written Answers — Child Support: Child Support (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 22 and 37 together. In the context of the partnership agreement 'Sustaining Progress', the National Economic and Social Council was asked to examine the feasibility of merging the family income supplement and child dependant allowance into a second tier child income support. Such a payment would be aimed specifically at targeting child poverty by channelling...

Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: My Department provides for a range of family support programmes and services, via the Family Services Project and the Family Support Agency, through a range of groups and organisations that are involved in the provision of supports and information to parents and families. Specifically, the Family Support Agency has responsibility for a number of key programmes including the Family and...

Written Answers — Departmental Schemes: Departmental Schemes (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, provides for the payment of a rent supplement to assist eligible people who are unable to provide for their immediate accommodation needs from their own resources and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. Under the...

Written Answers — Community Welfare Service: Community Welfare Service (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme (SWA) is administered by some 700 Community Welfare Officers and 59 Superintendent Community Welfare Officers (SCWOs) and supporting clerical staff, working within the Community Welfare Service of the Health Service Executive. The transfer of the Community Welfare Service to my Department arises from the Government decision earlier this year to...

Written Answers — Departmental Schemes: Departmental Schemes (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 27, 46 and 85 together. The review of the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme was carried out as part of the Government's Expenditure Review Initiative series of Programme Evaluation reviews. Given the extensive and complex nature of the scheme, the review was undertaken in two phases. A report was published at the end of the first phase in December...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: To qualify for a jobseeker's payment a person must be available for and genuinely seeking work. Reviews of recipients' efforts to find work are carried out regularly by local offices. The onus is on the customer to show that he or she satisfies this condition by providing clear and convincing evidence that he or she has made an active search for work on an on-going basis. Statistics of people...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 29 and 272 together. Under the Pensions Act, 1990, trustees have the main responsibility for the administration of funded occupational pension schemes and for compliance with the requirements that apply to these schemes. The Pensions Board has the main statutory responsibility for monitoring compliance with the Pensions Act and is also required under the Act...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Fraud: Social Welfare Fraud (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: A Social Welfare Inspector was assigned to the Garda National Investigation Bureau, GNIB, in July 2004 to assist my Department and the Bureau in the investigation of social welfare fraud and breaches of the Immigration Acts, to provide information and intelligence and to promote the benefits of a multi-agency approach to immigration and employment law enforcement. A second inspector was...

Written Answers — Anti-Poverty Strategy: Anti-Poverty Strategy (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I welcome the launch, late last month, of the latest research report of the Vincentian Partnership for Social Justice, titled " Minimum Essential Budgets for Six Households". My Department will examine the research report and its recommendations over the next period in the context of setting future policy direction. It is clear that Government has already acted, in 2006, to address some of...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 32 and 62 together. The improvements made to the Disability Allowance (DA) scheme since its transfer from the Health Boards in 1996 mean that many of those who had previously been disqualified for payment under the DPMA scheme because they were in residential care are now entitled to payment under the (DA) scheme. Furthermore, people who are living in...

Written Answers — Waste Charges: Waste Charges (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 33 and 282 together. The setting of waste management charges and the introduction of waivers in respect of waste charges is, as stated by my colleague the Minister for Environment, Heritage and Local Government, a matter for each local authority. The introduction of a national social welfare scheme to address the issue would be complex given the wide range of...

Written Answers — Labour Market Participation: Labour Market Participation (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 35, 69, 98 and 110. In the Budget of December 2005, I announced a wide range of important reforms for non-contributory pensioners in conjunction with the introduction of the State Pension (non- contributory). These reforms include improvements to the means test for pensioners, the raising of the weekly means disregard from €7.60 to €20. As part of the...

Written Answers — Departmental Schemes: Departmental Schemes (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: My Department through its various social insurance and assistance schemes provides income supports to people to meet their basic living needs, including food, clothing, heat and light. Supplements are also payable in certain circumstances for specific needs, for example fuel allowances, rent supplements, living alone allowance for older people or the household benefits package for pensioners,...

Written Answers — Ministerial Appointments: Ministerial Appointments (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The five statutory agencies operating under the aegis of my Department are the Pensions Board, the Combat Poverty Agency, Comhairle, the Family Support Agency and the Social Welfare Tribunal. In addition the Pensions Ombudsman comes under the remit of my Department. Since my appointment as Minister for Social and Family Affairs I have appointed persons to fill vacancies as they occur on...

Written Answers — National Carers Strategy: National Carers Strategy (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 39 and 50 together. Supporting and recognising carers in our society has been a priority of the Government since 1997. Over that period, weekly payment rates to carers have been greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have been significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes such as carer's benefit and the...

Written Answers — Departmental Schemes: Departmental Schemes (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 41, 43, 45, 70, 72, 86, 97 and 291 together. Supporting and recognising carers in our society is and has been a priority of the Government since 1997. Over that period, weekly payment rates to carers have been greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have been significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes...

Written Answers — Budget Submissions: Budget Submissions (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The farm assist scheme, which introduced special arrangements for farmers on low incomes, was provided for in the Social Welfare Act, 1999 and came into operation with effect from 7 April 1999. There are currently 7,483 farm assist recipients and the average weekly payment is €178.52. The level of take-up since the farm assist scheme was first introduced in April 1999 significantly...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 48 and 91 together. In the context of the recent Budget, I announced significant improvements in the rate of payment for qualified adults on State pensions and important changes in the way these payments will be made in the future. The Programme for Government contains a commitment "to introduce a personal pension entitlement for pensioner spouses currently...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Policy: Social Welfare Policy (14 Dec 2006)

Séamus Brennan: At present the European Union Social Questions Group are considering two related proposals dealing with the co-ordination of social security systems within the European Union and a proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on improving the portability of supplementary pension rights. These proposals have been discussed over the past 18 months under the UK,...