Results 7,061-7,080 of 28,255 for speaker:Éamon Ó Cuív

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I am interested in hearing the Deputy's views on this. The difficulty with his proposal is that somebody would approach one with a very valid case-----

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The blind pension for those over 66 is now paid as a State pension; it is not affected.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I am coming to those. Had I picked out the 1,400 blind people, which would not have had any significant effect on the arithmetic, the Deputy would have argued that there are many on the disability allowance whose multiple disabilities are far worse than partial sight. The Deputy would have made this case to me very cogently. I know people whose disabilities are far worse than that of...

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: That is exactly what I am coming to. If one decided not to cut them all, including the allowance for the blind, it would lead one to the disability allowance and then to the invalidity pension. One might say the invalidity pension could be supplemented by other means, but one might not have other means. In such circumstances, one must consider the criteria associated with the disability...

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: According to the 2009 figures, there were 113,000 widows and widowers in receipt of a contributory widow's or widower's pension. They comprise a very heterogeneous group because one has a legitimate right to work if one is in receipt of a widow's contributory pension. It is not means tested. Therefore, widows' incomes are very varied. Owing to the contributory nature of the benefit,...

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Widows with children are paid the one-parent family payment. If I decided to create a new category comprising widows with children, separated and divorced people would ask why I was treating them separately and giving them a different fundamental rate in spite of both groups having the same cost of living.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I am explaining what I considered.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The problem is that if one were to remove all the one-parent family payments, one would have to take another €3 or €4 off those on the jobseeker's allowance and jobseeker's benefit. That is where the difficulty lies. Valid issues have been raised by the Opposition. I do not want anybody to create a world like that in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland on the basis of what I said. Nobody...

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: That is a good question. I have narrowed that differential by €10. It has been a tradition to pay more to larger families.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I am running out of time to address the question. I could have saved a lot of money by bringing the third and fourth children-----

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I am just explaining. Larger families have expenses and child benefit does not meet the full cost of rearing a child, or anything like it, as all of us know. One might ask why I did not take €5, which cut would have been applied in respect of the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth child. The problem with that approach is that a family with four, five or six children would...

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: We have. If the Deputy had attended the full committee meetings-----

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: -----he would be well aware that I have given all of those details time and again in the committee.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: He tends to breeze in-----

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Second Stage (Resumed) (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The Deputies do not appear to want the rest of the answers. I like to be thorough in responding to points made by Deputies but my time has concluded.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Deputy Ó Snodaigh should read the rules.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Chuir mé an-spéis sa mhéid a bhí le rá ag an Teachta Aengus Ó Snodaigh, mar dá leanfadh muid polasaithe Páirtí Shinn Féin, séard a tharlódh sa tír ná nach mbeadh aon saibhreas á dhéanamh ag éinne. B'fhéidir go mbeadh chuile duine mar a chéile, ach b'fhéidir go mbéidis mar a chéile ar an gcaoi a bhfuileadar mar a chéile i gCúba - bocht. Go bunúsach, má tá sé i...

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I am entitled to reply to Deputy Ó Snodaigh's Second Stage speech.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Deputy Ó Snodaigh spoke at length.

Social Welfare Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (9 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Yes, but I have the right to reply. I have never-----