Results 15,761-15,780 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for those questions. I thank him for the lovely bread that I got in Waterford. It was very tasty.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Blaas. I will recommend that the bread be brought in for the committee members. It would help them for the day. It was very nice. I thank the Deputy. Regarding our spending on office premises, our staff in the Department of Rural and Community Development have embraced remote working. Over 90% of staff are able to work remotely and worked effectively during the Covid pandemic. Half...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I will try to cover them as best I can. On the rural regeneration and development fund, we have been funding many town centre projects, enterprise centres and the restoration of old buildings, including various items of infrastructure within towns around those projects. I take the Deputy's point about the western rail corridor. I am sure it would make a huge difference to Mayo and Galway....

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: In fairness, the Deputy started the Ulster Canal. If I could get it well on its way, I would be happy. These projects take a long time. Category 2 of the RRDF targets this type of funding. It is about doing the groundwork, looking at costs, finding out what work needs to be done and carrying out surveys. I suggest that people make an application when category 2 is open again. Obviously,...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Category 1 is open at the minute. Category 2 was announced after Christmas and I will open it later this year, probably August or September.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Just one second while I double-check. I am sorry - I will shortly be publishing a schedule for all the schemes.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Everyone will be able to see exactly when applications can be made. I believe it will be around August when we will be opening up category 2. People can start getting their plans together because you do not feel the months going by and it takes a while to pull together all the various strands needed for a good application.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy. Scarriff received €524,000 for a project under the rural regeneration and development fund that has just been announced. There are projects that have not been successful and I know people are disappointed. Sometimes the projects do not just fit into the criteria. Perhaps there are other sources of funding that are more suited for certain aspects of projects. My...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I will pass over to my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Joe O'Brien, for some of the queries that have been raised. I will speak about the community centre fund, which I will be announcing very shortly. Community centres and facilities are funded from a number of streams across Government and local government. I am aware there is no dedicated stand-alone funding stream for capital...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Revised) (2 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the members of the committee. It is a new year now, and I look forward to working with them in the year ahead. I thank them for their assistance.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The State Pension (Contributory) is a PRSI-based pension, financed by contributions made by current workers and their employers, and paid to pensioners, at a rate based upon their PRSI record when working. In order to qualify for the maximum rate of the State pension (contributory) a person must, amongst other qualifying conditions, have a minimum of 520 paid reckonable PRSI contributions in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: 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 are no delays with processing CA claims at present. The target processing time for CA is to process 75% of new...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Carer's Benefit (CARB) is a PRSI based payment, made to persons who leave the workforce or reduce their working hours to provide full-time care and attention to a person who has such a disability that they require that level of care. It is payable for a maximum of 104 weeks for each person being cared for. There are no delays with processing CARB claims at present. The target processing time...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Disability allowance (DA) is a weekly allowance for people with a disability aged between 16 and 66 with a disability which is expected to last for at least one year and who satisfy the medical condition and the means test and who are habitually resident in Ireland. There is no delay with processing DA claims at present. The target processing time for DA is to process 75% of new claims...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The following table provides a breakdown by year of applications received, awarded, cleared and refused for Carer's Allowance, Carer's Benefit and Disability Allowance between 1st January 2018 and 31st December 2021. Carer’s Allowance Year 2018 2019 2020 2021 Applications Received 20,208 19,402 18,774 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pension Provisions (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Entitlement to State pension (contributory) can only be assessed on the basis of the eligibility conditions applicable on the date an individual reaches pension age, upon receipt of a duly completed application. The person concerned was born in 1966 and has therefore not reached current state pension age. Under current eligibility conditions, an individual must have 520 full-rate paid...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: My Department understands the many pressures faced by customers and always seeks to ensure that claims are handled quickly and efficiently. I am pleased to report that claim processing is up to date, with processing targets met, or exceeded, on average for all the main scheme areas. Processing times vary across schemes, depending on the differing qualification criteria. Schemes that require a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Insurance (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Following consultation with the Deputy's office it is understood that the question relates to a recommendation of the Commission on Pensions. The Pensions Commission was established, inter alia, to develop options for Government to consider in addressing the sustainability of the State pension system and the social insurance fund. The Commission presented its report to Government late...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Contracts (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Details of the consultancy payment made by my Department in relation to Covid-19 are set out in the following table. There were no COVID-19 related consultancy payments made in 2020 and none to date in 2022. Consultancy Spend Consultancy Support in the setting up of PUP Scheme Area and in establishing the Central Jobseeker Processing Unit - 2021 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Feb 2022)

Heather Humphreys: In order to qualify for Illness Benefit, a person must have 39 PRSI contributions paid or credited in the second last complete tax year from which the claim is made, or they must have 26 reckonable PRSI contributions paid in both the second last complete tax year and the year prior to that. They must also have at least 13 PRSI contributions paid in one of the past 5 years from which the claim...