Results 8,301-8,320 of 10,035 for speaker:Martin Cullen

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (23 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: I have made no policy changes with a view to reducing expenditure this year.

Order of Business (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The Deputy has that clear anyway.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: Rent supplement may be paid by electronic fund transfer. The Health Service Executive has advised that if the person concerned wishes to change the method of payment of his rent supplement, he should contact the community welfare officer at his local health centre to discuss arrangements.

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The level of the weekly social insurance contribution that is payable is, for the most part, determined by both the level of reckonable earnings in that week and the appropriate PRSI rate. The PRSI exemption on low earnings has now been increased to €352 per week (up from €339 in 2007) — any earnings above this level are liable to an employee PRSI contribution rate of 4%. Above this...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 158 and 159 together. The estimated full year costs of introducing a Paternity Benefit, on a similar basis to maternity benefit, for one, two and four weeks are €10.5m, €21.1m, and €42.2m, respectively.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: Disability Allowance is a weekly Allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged over 16 and under 66. The disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to both medical assessment and a means test. The person concerned made an application for Disability Allowance on 12th September, 2007. Following as assessment by a Social Welfare...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: My Department has no record of a current application for farm assist from the person concerned. However, it is open to the person concerned to apply for farm assist and a form for this purpose has been issued to her. The person concerned has been awarded widow's non-contributory pension at the weekly rate of €170.30 from 1 February 2008. Her first payment, including arrears, will issue...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: Persons of a marriage/union who reside at different addresses and who fail to provide evidence that the marriage/union has been dissolved, or irretrievably broken down, are considered to be geographically separated. In order to qualify for one-parent family payment a separated person must demonstrate that the marriage tie between the applicant and his/her spouse is broken. The fact that a...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The Social Insurance Fund derives its income mainly from pay-related social insurance contributions from both employers and employees. It provides insured contributors with both long-term pension benefits and short-term benefits such as unemployment and disability payments. The table outlines the Social Insurance Fund receipts, expenditure, annual surplus and cumulative surplus for each year...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The person concerned applied for One Parent Family Payment in February 2003 and April 2007. On each occasion her application was disallowed by Deciding Officers on the grounds that she failed to establish that she was a separated person within the meaning of the Social Welfare legislation. The person concerned appealed the decisions to the Social Welfare Appeals Office and, following oral...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (24 Apr 2008)

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. Each application is...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: Invalidity pension is a social insurance based payment paid to people who are permanently incapable of work due to disability or illness. One of the conditions for receipt of the payment is that the recipient does not engage in any form of employment. However, an exemption to this requirement is provided for in very specific circumstances. Such an exemption, which typically lasts for 12...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (24 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: To date, under the current programme, 192 posts have relocated from the Department's Dublin Offices to Carrick-on-Shannon and Sligo. In addition, the Department has decentralised offices in Longford, Sligo, Letterkenny, Waterford, Dundalk and Roscommon and a further 195 employees have transferred to these offices and other offices of the Department, to fill vacancies created by the current...

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The position of people on low income who are working and who are renting their home in the private rented residential sector is a significant issue for Government. The Government's overall objective is to enable every household to have available an affordable dwelling of good quality, suited to its needs, in a good environment and as far as possible at the tenure of its choice. To this end,...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The state pension (transition) was introduced in 1970 when it was known as the retirement pension. It was designed to bridge the gap between the standard social welfare pension age, which at that time was 70 years of age, and retirement at age 65. The social welfare pension age was reduced over a period of years until it reached 66 years of age. A key qualifying condition for the scheme is...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: Prior to this month, child benefit continued to be paid to the birth parent where the child was placed in foster care, regardless of the duration of foster care and even where the level of support provided by the birth parent was only marginal or occasional in nature. However, as the purpose of child benefit is to assist toward the ongoing cost of child rearing, I made provision for payment...

Written Answers — Data Protection: Data Protection (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: This Department administers some fifty schemes and makes payments to one million people each week. Because of the nature, scale and diversity of its work, the Department holds detailed information about its customers and takes its responsibilities to safeguard this data extremely seriously. All electronic data is stored in the Department's primary computer site. The site itself has rigorous...

Written Answers — Waste Management: Waste Management (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The setting of waste management charges and the introduction of waivers in respect of waste charges is, as has been stated in this House on many occasions, a matter for each local authority. Local authorities operate under the auspices of the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. The introduction of a national social welfare scheme to address the issue would not be...

Written Answers — Customer Services: Customer Services (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: My Department is committed to delivering a high quality customer service for customers, including those who prefer to contact us by telephone. Calls are dealt with in our local office network as well as in our headquarter offices. In recent years investments in telephone technology, along with continued emphasis on staff training, has facilitated the introduction of enhanced LoCall...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (29 Apr 2008)

Martin Cullen: The majority of Child Benefit awards are processed either automatically or in a partially automated fashion for children born in Ireland once their birth details are registered with the General Registrar's Office. As a result there is no backlog in these claims (for children born in Ireland) and parents are in general contacted by the Child Benefit office within two days of the registration...