Results 4,081-4,100 of 5,587 for speaker:Kevin Humphreys

Leaders' Questions (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Is that the man behind the wire?

Leaders' Questions (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Did the Deputies get approval for it?

Leaders' Questions (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh should sit down and stop being a bully.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: School Meals Programme (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to some 1,700 schools and organisations which benefits approximately 217,000 children at a total cost of €39 million. An additional €3 million was allocated to the programme as part of Budget 2016, bringing the total allocation to €42 million in 2016. There are two schemes operated...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: School Meals Programme (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to some 1,700 schools and organisations which benefits approximately 217,000 children at a total cost of €39 million. An additional €3 million was allocated to the programme as part of Budget 2016, bringing the total allocation to €42 million in 2016. There are two schemes operated...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Services Programme (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The Department of Social Protection supports service provision through a number of programmes and schemes. The Community Services Programme (CSP) supports community companies that operate on a community business or social enterprise model. Companies supported by the CSP generate and use income from the services they provide to pay staff, meet overhead costs and to contribute to future...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Youth Guarantee (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The Government's primary strategy to tackle youth unemployment is 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. The Government recognises that as the recovery takes hold, there is a need for additional measures to ensure that as...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: JobPath Implementation (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 64 and 65 together. JobPath is a new approach to employment activation that will support people who are long-term unemployed and those most at risk of becoming long-term unemployed to secure and sustain paid employment. Following the completion of a public procurement process, two companies were selected to provide the JobPath service - Turas Nua and...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Labour Activation Measures (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: For each client the Department of Social Protection uses a different combination of the key elements of the activation model, according to the age (under or over 25), probability of exiting the live register (low, medium or high PEX score), length of unemployment (long term or short term). The first intervention occurs immediately after the client is selected for activation. This takes...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Youth Guarantee (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The Government recognises the importance of increasing participation in employment for persons with a disability. To this end, the Department provides a wide range of work related supports, which in 2015 will cost an estimated €37 million solely for persons with a disability. The Government's commitments to facilitating increased participation in employment for persons with a...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Industrial Disputes (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 85 and 86 together. The rural social scheme (RSS) provides income support for farmers and those engaged in fishing who have an entitlement to specified social welfare payments on the basis of low means. Key criteria for participation and continued eligibility for the scheme is that the participant is underemployed in their primary activity i.e. either...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rural Social Scheme Data (17 Dec 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The rural social scheme (RSS) provides income support for farmers and fishermen who have an entitlement to specified social welfare payments. One of the key criteria for participation and continued eligibility for the scheme is that the participant must be underemployed in their primary activity i.e. either farming or fishing, and that their earnings are insufficient to support their family...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Payments (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: I congratulate Mr. Peter Finnegan on his appointment today. Rent supplement plays a vital role in housing families and individuals, with the scheme supporting approximately 61,000 people for which the Government has provided approximately €267 million for 2016. Properties are being secured under the scheme with over 20,100 rent supplement tenancies awarded during 2015. In view of...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Payments (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: I hope the Deputy has advised that family not to wait a day to engage with the community welfare officer. Like the Deputy, I deal with this on a weekly, if not daily basis and there is a huge and severe problem relating to supply. This Government has provided over €900 million to be invested in the provision of social housing in 2016 and we will start seeing progress on that in the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Payments (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: I repeat that through active engagement with the community welfare officer we have dealt with numerous cases. There have been over 6,000 cases and they have been dealt with on a case-by-case basis and in a very successful manner. There have been reforms in the private rental sector. Rent review notices have been introduced. Period of rent reviews, a temporary provision which applies for...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Payments (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: If we had followed the Deputy's advice, in many ways we would have been in a far worse position.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Payments (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: Now, there is hope. We now have money to invest in social housing, and that is being done. As I outlined, the total fund is over €900 million. A sum of €923 million is being invested in 2016 for the provision of social housing. There is €3.8 billion for the programme to supply social housing in the coming years. As the recovery is ongoing the discussion we should...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Community Services Programme (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for raising this. I have visited a number of community services programme, CSP, schemes over the last number of years and I have seen the positive impact of the programme on local communities. We have worked very closely with the community groups that operate it. The community services programme is one of a number of programmes and schemes operated by the Department....

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Community Services Programme (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: It is not good practice simply to allocate funds without an underlying rationale. Hence, the facility is being provided for those companies which need to make a case for additional supports. That process is being put in place. The schemes operating under that are being identified. The level of grant is not related to the value of the minimum wage. I have visited and spoken to those...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Community Services Programme (13 Jan 2016)

Kevin Humphreys: I hope to have the mechanism in place by the end of the month. That is what we are working towards and that is why we have been communicating with groups on the putting in place of the process. I want to return to the key point. The grant will be paid by the Department, regardless of whether I am here after the election. It is not related to the minimum wage. We want a social enterprise...