Results 15,101-15,120 of 15,157 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Websites (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department uses Google Analytics tools that track website traffic to its online platforms. UTM parameters are enabled for MyGovID and MyWelfare. The monthly number of visits, using this parameter, for each of the past 12 months is set out below. Month MyGovId MyWelfare June 2024 0 0 July 2024 0 0 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Men's Sheds (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: In July 2024, my Department launched a new scheme called Work and Access. This scheme offers seven supports to improve access in the workplace for people with a disability. Funding is available for supports including communication supports, work equipment, and training. Workplace Adaptation is one of the supports offered under the Work and Access scheme. This grant is designed for people...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department provides a suite of income supports for those who are unable to work due to an illness or disability. These include contributory payments, based on PRSI contributions, such as Illness Benefit and Invalidity Pension, and non-contributory payments, based on a means test, such as Disability Allowance. Entitlement to these supports is contingent on the extent to which a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Contracts (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department did not award any contracts to Communications and PR Firms in 2024. Details relating to the bodies under the aegis of the Department are listed below CIB Contractor Name Contract Purpose Contract Award Date Total Expenditure 2024 Murray Consultants Public Relations and Communications Services 04 January...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department provides income supports for people who are unemployed. As I outlined in my previous response, the Professional Artist Scheme under Jobseeker’s Allowance provides support for unemployed artists whereby they are exempt from labour market activation for up to 12 months to focus on their profession. The other conditions associated with Jobseeker’s Allowance,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: Capital (savings and investments) and the value of property owned, but not personally used or enjoyed, are assessed as means in means assessments. Where capital or property is assessed on this basis, any income received from its use (for example interest on savings, dividends from shares, rent from property let) is not assessed as cash income. In general, the formula used to assess the weekly...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: The person concerned is in receipt of Jobseekers Pay Related Benefit (JPRB) from the 28/04/2025 at a rate of €136.90 per week. JPRB is payable in this case at €136.90 for the first 13 weeks of their claim , €125.50 for the next 13 weeks and €125.00 for the remaining 13 weeks. A decision letter was sent to the person concerned on 28/05/2025.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. There have been a number of significant improvements made to the means test for CA in recent years. As part of Budget...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Judicial Reviews (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: Below is a table of the number of judicial review cases taken against the Department or Minister for Social Protection: Year Number of judicial review cases Year Number of judicial review cases taken against the Department or Minister for Social Protection 2025 (to date) 10 2024 54 ...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Departmental Inquiries (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: A key focus of Our Rural Future - the Government's Rural Development Policy 2021 to 2025 - is to optimise digital connectivity to support vibrant, sustainable rural communities, ensuring equality of access to digital services. Our Rural Future committed to the establishment of a network of 400 remote working hubs across the country over the lifetime of the policy. Connectedhubs.ie was...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Departmental Data (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Community Centre Investment Fund (CCIF) has provided in excess of €109 million since 2022 for the enhancement and refurbishment of existing community centres and the construction of new centres. Over €45.8 million was approved for some 861 community centres nationwide under CCIF 2022. In early 2024, funding of over €30 million was approved for the construction of 12...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Rural Regeneration (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) is a major capital investment programme which seeks to support large-scale, ambitious projects which can achieve sustainable economic and social development in rural areas. Calls for applications under are sought under two categories, Category 1 and Category 2. Category 1 relates to larger scale ambitious capital projects with all necessary...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Departmental Websites (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht's website is hosted by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) as part of the gov.ie central website for government services and information, and analytics are provided to the Department as part of that service. I have set out in the following table details in relation to the 1,222 visits, generated by...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Departmental Contracts (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: In general my Department’s communications work is delivered in-house and with external communications and/or PR inputs only utilised where external specialist expertise is required. With that in mind, there were only two contracts awarded by my Department for communications/PR work with costs in 2024. Both of these related to capacity and awareness raising for the community and...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Community Development Projects (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Community Centre Investment Fund (CCIF) has provided in excess of €109 million since 2022 for the enhancement and refurbishment of existing community centres and the construction of new centres. Over €45.8 million was approved for some 861 community centres nationwide under CCIF 2022. In early 2024, funding of over €30 million was approved for the construction of...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Judicial Reviews (17 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department was established in July 2017 and has defended two judicial review cases for matters currently under its remit. The requested details are provided in the table below, and I can confirm that there are no open or pending cases at this time. Year Initiated Cases Defended Cases Lost Cases Withdrawn Cases Settled 2022 ...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: I thank Deputy O'Meara for raising this issue. Relating to LEADER in Tipperary, the Tipperary local action group, LAG, has received €10.8 million for the 2021 to 2027 period, which is an increase of 7% on the previous budget. As the Deputy knows, the Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht has no role in deciding on specific projects. That is done by the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Eligibility (19 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: Maidin mhaith ar ais duit, a Theachta. The new jobseeker's pay-related benefit was introduced at the end of March. This new social insurance-based income support has replaced the jobseeker's benefit scheme for those who have become fully unemployed since the commencement of the scheme on 31 March. On 7 June 2025, some 11,900 jobseeker's pay-related benefit claims had been awarded under...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Eligibility (19 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: I am always open to considering the Deputy's suggestions. We will be reviewing the jobseeker’s pay-related benefit after a year of operation. This is the first time in more than 40 years we have had such a benefit. In connection with other questions that have arisen, it will provide the foundation for other potential pay-related benefits. If there are relevant cases, the Deputy...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Eligibility (19 Jun 2025)

Dara Calleary: Absolutely. I am always open to any engagement with unions on this. This system was designed for workers who are going to be re-employed relatively quickly. Hopefully in the coming weeks, we will get the first signal of that, because the first cohort of people will be coming to the end of the top payment of 13 weeks. That payment declines as they are no longer employed so to do a full...