Results 12,621-12,640 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The back to education allowance (BTEA) scheme is a second chance education opportunities scheme designed to remove the barriers to participation in second and third level education by enabling eligible people on social welfare to continue to receive a payment while pursuing an approved full-time education course that leads to a higher qualification than that already held. The allowance is...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The research referred to has not been published to date. However, my Department will spend over €530 million in 2011 on the fuel scheme and the telephone, gas and electricity elements of the household benefits package which will benefit some 390,000 people on household benefits and 375,000 on the fuel allowance. In 2005 there were 325,000 people on household benefits and 265,000 on the...

Written Answers — Live Register: Live Register (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The tabular statement includes a breakdown of people on the Live Register for more than one year in October 2011 by age and scheme, with the same information for October 2010, and the change between 2010 and 2011. During that period, the number of people under 25 years of age who were unemployed for one year or more remained steady. However, there was an increase of over 32,000 in the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: Self-employed workers are liable for PRSI at the Class S rate of 4% which entitles them to access long-term benefits such as State pension (contributory) and widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's pension (contributory). Any proposal to extend short term benefits such as jobseeker's benefit to the self-employed would have significant financial implications and would have to be...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The question of introducing a scheme of statutory sick pay is one of a range of options being examined with a view to reforming the social welfare system to bring it into line with practices in other countries, addressing the deficit in the social insurance fund and meeting the commitments which this country has entered into with the EU/IMF/ECB to achieve substantial reductions in current...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: Invalidity pension is a payment for people who are permanently incapable of work because of illness or incapacity and who satisfy the pay-related social insurance (PRSI) contribution conditions. According to departmental records the person concerned does not have sufficient PRSI contributions to qualify for invalidity pension. However, entitlement to invalidity pension can only be fully...

Written Answers — Community Employment Schemes: Community Employment Schemes (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: As Minister for Social Protection I do not have a role in the administration of individual cases in regard to the operation of the community employment (CE) programme, as these matters are dealt with by FÁS under statute. I am advised by FÁS that, as the individual in question had been claiming jobseeker's benefit for just over a year before joining CE, he was deemed eligible for one...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 112 to 117, inclusive, together. I am informed by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that the numbers of appeals on hands in respect of the schemes requested by the Deputy are set out in the table. The figures are based on the numbers on hand at 31/10/11. No report is available which shows the longest individual waiting times for decided cases. I am also...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The Department is reviewing entitlement to back to school clothing footwear allowance in this case and will advise the person concerned of its decision shortly.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the invalidity pension claim of the person concerned was disallowed following an assessment by a Medical Assessor who expressed the opinion that he was medically unsuitable for the allowance. An appeal was registered on 14 November 2011 and in accordance with the statutory procedures the relevant department papers and the comments of the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 2 November 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Social Welfare Services on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the appeal in question will be referred in due course to an Appeals...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 21 November 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Social Welfare Services on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the appeal in question will be referred to an Appeals Officer for...

Written Answers — Live Register: Live Register (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The number of causal workers signing on the Live Register varies from week to week but has been in the range 84,000 to 86,000 during most of 2011. Between 68,000 and 71,000 of these receive a payment in any given week. A recent analysis of signing patterns showed that just over 20,000 of those who received a payment were paid benefits for three days.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The daily rate of payment of benefit for the contingency of unemployment has always been calculated at one sixth of the weekly rate. This delineation reflects the working patterns that have traditionally applied in the labour market and particularly accorded with the usual experiences of persons who accessed benefit payments during periods of unemployment. Increasingly in recent years the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: To qualify for jobseeker's benefit, a person must be available for and looking for full-time work, satisfy the PRSI contribution conditions, and have a loss of employment. Once a person satisfies these conditions, jobseeker's benefit is paid for the days that they are unemployed. For each day of unemployment in the week (Monday to Saturday), the person is paid one-sixth of their weekly rate...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The Department has received an appeal for back to school clothing and footwear allowance from the person concerned and will inform her of its decision shortly.

Written Answers — Redundancy Payments: Redundancy Payments (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: I do not have specific details on this particular case. However, redundancy rebate/lump sum claims received at the beginning of May 2011 are currently being processed.

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 127 and 139 together. The Labour Court recommended in July 2008 that an agreed pension scheme should be introduced for community employment (CE) scheme supervisors and assistant supervisors, and that such a scheme should be adequately funded by FÁS. Notwithstanding the positions of the Department in rejecting that liability for these costs falls to be met...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 16 November 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Community Welfare Services on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the appeal in question will be referred in due course to an...

Written Answers — Redundancy Payments: Redundancy Payments (23 Nov 2011)

Joan Burton: A redundancy lump sum claim in respect of the person concerned was received on 30 May 2011. Redundancy lump sum claims received at the beginning of May 2011 are currently being processed.