Results 421-440 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: Child dependant allowance is an additional payment made to social welfare recipients in respect of each qualified child dependant. From January, full child dependant allowance is payable where a person's spouse or partner's gross weekly income does not exceed €220. From January the half-rate allowance will be payable where incomes in excess of that figure do not exceed €350. In the...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: The qualifying conditions for pensions require that a person should have paid a minimum number of contributions at an appropriate rate and that he or she should enter insurance ten years before pension age and achieve a yearly average of between ten and 48 contributions over his or her working life. A yearly average of 48 contributions is required for a full-rate pension. Reduced pensions are...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: I provided an additional allocation in the 2005 budget of €2 million to enable us to press ahead with the new diet supplement. I have received the report to which the Senator referred. It is with the Department, and we have been considering it; we will continue to study it. We are pressing ahead with the diet supplement issue. The best assessment I can give the Senator of the timescale is...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: When the Department initiated additional inquiries regarding the diet supplement, it commissioned the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute to examine several factors, including the average cost of a proper, nutritionally balanced, healthy diet and how it corresponded to the current measure of cost relating to social welfare. Diet supplements are paid to 12,700 people. It is worth reminding...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: This amendment relates to the rent supplement debate, which has been protracted. I reviewed this scheme and made some changes to it. I only made those changes having met many groups, having listened to what was said in the Dáil and in the Seanad and having studied the matter in the Department with officials. I put a number of new arrangements in place. I have abolished the six months rule...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: The amendment refers largely to rent supplement. Subject to certain conditions, the supplementary welfare allowance scheme provides for the payment of a weekly or monthly supplement in respect of rent to eligible persons whose means are insufficient. I have dealt with this question. With the exception of those participating in improved employment schemes, those engaged in full-time...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: Of the 12,000 people I mentioned, some two thirds are women. Obviously the matter affects women disproportionately, which is a cause for concern.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: As of 3 December 2004, the number of families in receipt of the family income supplement was 14,611. They received an average weekly payment of €72.19. The scheme dates back to 1984 when it was established to assist low-income families. The measure is designed to help people move from unemployment into work, as well as supporting employees on low earnings who have families. The FIS ensures...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: I reiterate that I have reduced the qualifying period from 15 months to 12 months. The reason is that it was originally intended to be an assault on long-term unemployment. Long-term unemployment is generally defined as 12 months. With unemployment at 4.4% and a long-term unemployment rate of less than 1%, it is very tightly focused. I thought 12 months made sense given where the scheme was...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: I will consider this issue before Report Stage. The contribution of Senator Cox, supported by that of Senator Terry, strikes a chord with me. This is an area that is difficult to administer because of the numbers involved. I have already said regarding the rent supplement scheme that we should deal with people on the basis of individual needs, not according to an arbitrary time restriction or...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: In my review of the 2004 provisions, I concluded that some easement of this measure would be appropriate. Therefore, with effect from next January, the transitional half rate one-parent family payment will be made for a period of six months for qualifying recipients. Some 700 one-parent family payment recipients will benefit from this measure. The introduction of the transitional arrangement...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: I have no difficulty with the principle of helping lone parents. It is worth noting, however, that there are almost 80,000 people in receipt of one-parent family payments. The State's budget in this area is some €700 million, which is a substantial resource. Not all the recipients are lone parents in the traditional sense in that some may be widows and so on. It is also an area we need to...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2004: Committee and Remaining Stages. (16 Dec 2004)

Séamus Brennan: I thank you, a Leas-Chathaoirligh, the Cathaoirleach and the various acting chairpersons for the work done in helping us with the Bill. I thank each Member of the Seanad for the work they put in and the comments they made. I single out Senator Terry, who through all Stages assiduously pursued me on a range of issues, which gave me the opportunity to explain and expand. I know that the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 531 and 543 together. Rent and mortgage interest supplements are provided for under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Under standard assessment rules, rent supplements are calculated to ensure that an eligible person, after the payment of rent, has...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Rent supplements are provided through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare staff of the Health Service Executive. The southern regional office of the executive was contacted about this case. It has advised that it does not have a record of an application for rent supplement from the person concerned. If she wishes to apply,...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 533 and 545 together. The Government committed itself in the programme for Government and Sustaining Progress to increasing the pension payment for qualified adults aged 66 or over to the same level as the personal rate of the old age non-contributory pension. The estimated cost of this commitment is €44 million. Considerable progress has already been made...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Supplementary welfare allowance is not normally payable to people in full-time employment. Arrangements have been in place for a number of years, however, which allow people to retain a portion of their rent supplement when they take up employment through the back to work scheme and other approved schemes. The weekly household income limit in such cases, the ones to which the Deputy refers,...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The aim of the national fuel scheme is to assist householders in receipt of long-term social welfare or health board payments to meet their additional heating needs during the winter season from October to April. Under the scheme, a fuel allowance of €9 per week is paid to eligible households during the 29-week period, with an additional €3.90 per week being paid in designated smokeless...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Pension payment by electronic funds transfer has been made weekly in arrears since November 2004, whereas pension payment by payable order — book voucher — is made weekly in advance. Most people who opt for electronic funds transfer do so when they make their initial claim so there is no interruption to the flow of payments for such claims. When an existing recipient opts to switch from...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Jan 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The back to education allowance is a second chance education opportunities programme designed to encourage and facilitate people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the active work force. To qualify for participation in the programme an applicant must be, inter alia, in receipt of a relevant social...