Results 14,201-14,220 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Seanad: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I thank Senator Conway for raising this issue. Disability allowance is a means-tested payment for people with a specified disability whose income falls below certain limits and who are aged 16 and are under 66 and who are deemed to be habitually resident in the State. The qualifying conditions for disability allowance are provided for under Part 3 Chapter 10 of the Social Welfare...

Seanad: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I will ask the officials if it is possible to arrange that. I would like to stress again that with regard to disability, the decisions are made on medical grounds and made by medical people. This case has been considered a number of time and it is not the social welfare general staff who have made the decision. The decision has been made on medical grounds. However, I will certainly...

Seanad: Community Mental Health (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I thank Senator Clune for raising this important issue, which affects a large number of young girls, in particular, and families. I am responding on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, who is responsible for these matters. I am pleased to have an opportunity to confirm to the House that it is planned that some of the additional funding that was allocated to the mental...

Seanad: Community Mental Health (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I concur with what Senator Clune said about BodyWhys. I know of families that have been affected by eating disorders. It is an incredibly painful issue not only for the individual, but also for the members of his or her family, who feel helpless they watch as an active and lovely young child growing into somebody with a difficult eating disorder. I thank the Senator for raising the issue.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: Rent supplement provides short-term support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation, whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. Since 2005, rent supplement expenditure has increased from €369 million to a provisional outturn of €503 million in 2011. As the Department currently...

Written Answers — Personal Debt: Personal Debt (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: My Department participated in the Interdepartmental Mortgage Arrears Working Group (referred to as the Keane group) and is currently a member of the Steering Group set up by the Minister for Finance to oversee and drive its overall recommendations. My Department provides a number of supports for those in mortgage difficulty, particularly through the Mortgage Interest Supplement scheme which...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The person concerned made an application for rent supplement on 9 of December 2011. He moved into accommodation that was far in excess of the prescribed rent limits applicable to his circumstances. The person concerned has recently been contacted by an official from the Department and asked to renegotiate his rent to a suitable amount. The Department is prepared to allow him a rent higher...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 125 and 136 together. The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal from the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer who proposes to hold an oral hearing in this case. There has been a very significant increase in the number of appeals received by the Social Welfare Appeals Office since 2007 when the intake was 14,070 to 2010...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 8th November 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the appeal in question will be referred in due course to...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 21st July 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 6th...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal from the person concerned was examined by a Medical Assessor of the Social Welfare Services who was of the opinion that she was capable of work. She appealed this decision and in that context she was examined by another Medical Assessor who also expressed the opinion that she was capable of work. In the light of this, it was...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 24 October 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 06th...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned has not been received by that office. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions on social welfare entitlements.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 23rd January 2012. In accordance with statutory requirements, the Appeals Office has contacted the person concerned requesting her to set out the complete grounds of her appeal. On receipt of a response the appeal will be processed. The Social Welfare Appeals Office...

Written Answers — Proposed Legislation: Proposed Legislation (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Act 2011, which was enacted on 19 December 2011, gave legislative effect to a number of social welfare measures arising from Budget 2012. It will also be necessary to bring forward a further Social Welfare Bill to enact a number of other measures announced in Budget 2012, which are due to take effect early in 2012. This Bill will also provide for a range of other...

Written Answers — Freedom of Information: Freedom of Information (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The number of Freedom of Information requests received by my Department in 2011 was 1,106. This included the following numbers received by FOI agencies of the Department: Comhairle 5 Pensions Board 1 Pensions Ombudsmans Office 1 SW Appeals Office 178 A large percentage of...

Written Answers — Community Employment Schemes: Community Employment Schemes (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The purpose of Tús is to focus on those people who are long-term unemployed. For this reason, eligibility for both participatory and supervisory positions on Tús is at present confined to those on the Live Register for 12 months and in receipt of jobseeker's allowance. These provisions are to ensure a targeted approach to those currently affected by long-term unemployment. A review of...

Written Answers — Community Employment Schemes: Community Employment Schemes (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: There are 11 Community Employment (CE) projects in Co Cavan and 13 projects in Co Monaghan. I have requested a financial review of all CE projects and I am advised by Department officials in Cavan and Monaghan that the CE Sponsors in both counties have fully engaged in the review process. As already stated we will be ceasing the current practice of allocating the same level of training and...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 20th August 2011. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 19th...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: An inspector from the Department will complete her report on the one-parent family payment application of the person concerned in the coming week and a decision will be made on her application as soon as possible thereafter.