Results 1,521-1,540 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 388 and 394 to 396, inclusive, together. The social welfare pension rights of those who take time out of the workforce for caring duties are protected by carer's benefit, carer's allowance and the homemaker's scheme. The carer's benefit and allowance schemes are designed to provide financial support while the homemaker's scheme, which was introduced from 1994,...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The household benefits package, which comprises the electricity-gas allowance, telephone allowance and television licence schemes, is generally available to people living permanently in the State, aged 66 years or over, who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test. The package is also available to carers and people with disabilities under the age of 66 who...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The person concerned has been awarded an electricity and telephone allowance with effect from 12 March 2005. The relevant service providers have been notified to apply the allowances to the customer's account. A free lifetime television licence has also been awarded with effect from the expiry date of the customer's current TV licence. If the person concerned has purchased a TV licence since...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Providing quality customer service in Irish has always been a high priority in my Department. This includes provision of staff training in spoken and written Irish, translation of forms, leaflets and other documents, advertising, and the provision of bilingual signage in public areas. Expenditure on Irish is, therefore, part of the delivery of customer service and it is not possible to state...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The back to work allowance scheme which was introduced in September 1993 as part of my Department's programme of initiatives designed to assist long term unemployed people, lone parents and other social welfare recipients to return to the active labour force. The allowance provides a monetary incentive designed to make their return to work financially attractive and viable. It is designed to...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My Department arranges sessions at various centres around the country to assess or review the medical condition of people who are claiming a payment from my Department in respect of illness. These sessions are conducted by the Department's medical assessors and a nurse attendant is always present during the examinations. A nursing qualification, although advantageous to applicants, is not an...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The back to school clothing and footwear allowance scheme is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. The scheme is open to applications from June to the end of September each year. The statistics requested by the Deputy for the years 2002, 2003 and 2004 are set out in the following table. Statistics for 2005 are not available as they have...

Written Answers — Foreign Travel: Foreign Travel (26 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The information sought by the Deputy is as follows: 3-6 October 2002, annual conference of the coalition of Irish immigrant centre in Philadelphia, attended by the Minister, an adviser,and three officials; 15-6 October 2004, EU Presidency round table conference on poverty and social exclusion in Turin, hosted and by the Italian Presidency, attended by the Minister and seven officials; 6-8 May...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The back to school clothing and footwear allowance, BSCFA, is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Neither I nor my Department has any function with regard to decisions on individual claims. The midland area of the executive has advised that it has no record of an application for BSCFA from the person concerned. If she wishes to apply,...

Written Answers — Nursing Home Subventions: Nursing Home Subventions (26 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 197 to 199, inclusive, together. Earlier this year, the Government agreed the key elements of a scheme for the repayment of long-term stay charges. As I previously announced, these repayments will not impact on the current pension entitlements of affected persons. It will be a matter for pensioners themselves to decide what they do with any repayments received...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My Department assists and encourages long-term unemployed, and other welfare recipients including persons in receipt of widow-widower non-contributory pension to return to work, training or further education through a range of measures administered by my Department's social and family support service. One significant measure is the back to work allowance scheme which incentivises and...

Written Answers — Child Support: Child Support (26 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Detailed measures to give effect to the strategies to combat child poverty in Ireland are set out in the national action plan against poverty and social exclusion and in the national children's strategy. Ending child poverty is also one of ten special initiatives in Sustaining Progress. The most significant measure to support families with children in recent years has been the substantial...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My Department provides child income support in a number of ways. The principal support is child benefit, a universal payment which is neutral vis-À-vis the employment status of the child's parents and does not contribute to poverty traps. Over the period since 1997, the monthly rates of child benefit have increased by €103.51 at the lower rate and €127.78 at the higher rate, increases of...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I am not dependent exclusively on the NESC report in this regard but it is an important and valuable piece of work. I do not yet have the report from the NESC. I am aware it has to consider some drafts internally at the next meeting of the National Economic and Social Council. As I said in my reply, the policy in this regard will be very much informed by the proposals from NESC. Having said...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The aim of the national fuel scheme is to assist householders who are in receipt of long-term social welfare or Health Service Executive payments towards the cost of their additional heating needs during the winter season. Fuel allowances are paid currently for 29 weeks from the end of September to the middle of April each year. Some 274,000 households benefit under the scheme at a cost of...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The Deputy has made a good argument for re-examining the fuel allowance given that it has not been touched for many years and in light of recent fuel price increases. I will examine that closely in the context of the forthcoming budget and the subsequent social welfare legislation. There has been a windfall to the Exchequer from VAT and excise duty arising from fuel price increases, but the...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: ——and I intend to address the situation. I have discovered that those 237 people were in receipt of a fuel allowance to which they were not legally entitled. It was taken away in the ordinary course of events, but I will examine how best I can deal with the issue. I hope to make an announcement on it shortly.

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The requirement to be habitually resident in Ireland was introduced as a qualifying condition for certain social assistance schemes and child benefit with effect from 1 May 2004. It was introduced in the context of the Government's decision to open the Irish labour market to workers from the new EU member states without the limitations being imposed at that time by many other member states....

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I am sure Deputy Boyle would agree that we want to be as decent and honourable towards people who come to our shores as we possibly can be. Our current regulations are among the most liberal in the world, and certainly in terms of the European Union we have one of the more liberally interpreted regimes of any of our colleague countries. We must strike a balance between being decent, humane...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Decisions on entitlement to social welfare schemes are made by statutorily appointed deciding officers under the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 1993, as amended. Social welfare appeals are undertaken by duly appointed appeals officers. All persons who apply for carer's allowance, carer's benefit or for any social welfare scheme are informed of the decision on their entitlement and the...