Results 7,461-7,480 of 10,035 for speaker:Martin Cullen

Budget Statement 2008 (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: Shame on the local authority.

Budget Statement 2008 (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: Local authority councillors should do their job.

Budget Statement 2008 (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: There is no excuse for somebody being on the housing list for 15 years.

Budget Statement 2008 (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: I am only trying to help.

Budget Statement 2008 (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: It is outrageous for a local authority to behave like that.

Budget Statement 2008 (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The Deputy should hold back. He might get carried away.

Written Answers — Video Conferencing Facilities: Video Conferencing Facilities (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The Department does not currently use video conferencing facilities other than in a test environment. Effective video conferencing technology requires considerable network bandwidth and bandwidth of this capacity has only become generally economically available in recent times. Video conferencing facilities also require development of the underlying Information and Communications Technology...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: Some 433 staff of my Department availed of tax saver commuter tickets during 2007. Of these, 249 are renewed in January and the remainder on a monthly basis throughout the year.

Written Answers — Waste Management: Waste Management (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 181 and 182 together. The information sought by the Deputy in relation to the amount of waste in weight produced by my Department for these years is not available. However, following the introduction of a new waste management contract for 2007, figures are available for the 29 offices in the greater Dublin area for the period 1st January 2007 to 31st October...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: 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 greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes such as carer's benefit and the respite care grant have been introduced and extended....

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The primary objective of the back to education scheme is to remove the barriers to participation in third level education faced by people in receipt of long term social welfare payments thereby, providing an incentive for them to improve their employment prospects. On the basis that customers in possession of a primary degree have already achieved a high level of academic attainment which...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (5 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: Under the terms of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, an exceptional needs payment (ENP) may be made to help meet an essential, once-off cost which the applicant is unable to meet out of his/her own resources. There is no automatic entitlement to this payment. Eligible people would...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: Social welfare legislation provides that a person is disqualified from receipt of social welfare payments while undergoing imprisonment or detention in legal custody. An exception to this general principle is provided for in cases where a period of imprisonment is being served in place of payment of a fine. Notwithstanding the above, the qualification criteria for various schemes would...

Written Answers — Departmental Meetings: Departmental Meetings (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 171 and 172 together. My Department has a Management Board, chaired by the Secretary General, which meets regularly on a monthly basis. Minutes of the Board meetings, which note actions to be taken and the people responsible for progressing these actions, are circulated subsequent to each meeting. A separate meeting of the Management Board is held each month...

Written Answers — Ministerial Staff: Ministerial Staff (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: There are a total of 13.5 staff employed in my private and constituency offices. These include 9.5 administrative staff, comprising 1 Higher Executive Officer, on secondment from the Department of Transport, 2 Executive Officers and 6.5 Clerical Officers. All of the administrative staff are established civil servants. Since my appointment as Minister for Social and Family Affairs on 14th June...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The supplementary allowance (SWA) scheme, including rent supplement, is administered on my behalf by the Community Welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE). The Executive has advised that it has awarded a rent supplement of €263.92 per week to the person concerned with effect from 24th August 2007. The Executive has further advised that person concerned will be notified of...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The National Pensions Policy Initiative, subsequently confirmed in the National Pensions Review, estimated that 70 per cent of people at work, aged 30-65, would need supplementary coverage to meet the agreed aim in the Programme for Government to secure a retirement income from all sources of at least 50% of pre-retirement earnings. At present, 62 per cent of people in this category have...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The supplementary allowance (SWA) scheme, including rent supplement, is administered on my behalf by the Community Welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE). Rent supplement is subject to a limit on the amount of rent that an applicant for rent supplement may incur. These limits take household size into account as the objective is to ensure that rent supplement is not paid in...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The current system of mixed rate pro-rata pensions was introduced in 1991 and was designed to ensure that people who have contributed to the social insurance system at different rates receive a pension which reflects the proportion of full rate contributions which exists in their overall insurance record. The pension is calculated by taking the total number of contributions (modified and full...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (6 Dec 2007)

Martin Cullen: The person concerned is in receipt of maximum rate Widow's (Contributory) Pension of €191.30 plus € 21.90 fuel allowance, per week. As her spouse had worked in England, the relevant information was referred to the Department of Social Security in Newcastle upon Tyne (DHSS) to assess her eligibility for a widow's pension. It is a matter for that Department to advise the person concerned of...