Results 18,241-18,260 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Overpayments (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The total debt of €495.10 contains three components. Jobseekers Allowance payments of €174.20 were overpaid to the person concerned from 11 November 2011 to 06 December 2011 as a result of a delay in administering a change in circumstances. A Jobseekers Allowance payment of €53.30 was overpaid from 09 January 2012 to 10 January 2012 due to the spouse of the person...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Offices (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Income support and welfare benefits to customers of the Department of Social Protection in the North Monaghan and Monaghan Town area are provided by Monaghan Branch Office. The Branch Office has been located in Rooskey, County Monaghan for many years. The Department also provides Activation and Community Welfare services from the Plantation Building in Monaghan Town. Social Welfare...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Illness benefit is an income support payment for people of working age who are unable to work due to illness and who satisfy certain social insurance conditions. The payment has its origins in the disability benefit scheme. The scheme is intended to provide income replacement for insured persons during short spells of incapacity or illness. Other payments, such as invalidity pension or...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I confirm that the department received an application for carer’s allowance (CA) from the person concerned on 27 April 2016. Unfortunately, there are some delay in processing new applications at this point. Additional resources have been provided to the CA section in order to improve the waiting times for new applications and they are working hard to make this happen. Frequently,...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Appeals (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer on 11 May 2016, who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: European Court of Justice Rulings (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The rulings of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on the Insolvency Directive (2008/94) was in response to a reference by the High Court seeking clarification of the interpretation of European law emanating from EU Directive 2008/94EC on the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer. The ECJ ruling has implications for any defined benefit pension scheme where,...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Illness Benefit Reform (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The substantial deficit in the Social Insurance Fund (SIF) in recent years has been tackled through structural changes in PRSI rates such as the abolition of ceilings and allowances, as well as changes to contribution conditions and duration of payments. The increase in the number of “waiting days” from 3 to 6 was a relatively modest adjustment, required to ensure that the SIF...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Government recognises the importance of increasing participation in employment for persons with a disability and provides a wide range of income and employment-related supports. The partial capacity benefit scheme (PCB), introduced in 2012, provides an opportunity for people, who are in receipt of invalidity pension or who have been in receipt of illness benefit for a minimum of six...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (18 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal from the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer who has decided to convene an oral hearing in this case. Every effort will be made to hear the case as quickly as possible and the appellant will be informed when arrangements for the oral hearing have been made. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Household Benefits Scheme (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The overall concern in recent years has been to protect the primary social welfare rates. Expenditure on pensions at approx. €6.976 billion is the largest block of expenditure in the Department in the Estimate for 2016, representing approximately 35% of overall expenditure. Because of demographic changes, the Department’s spending on older people is increasing year on year....

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The social welfare legislation underpinning means testing for the jobseeker’s allowance (JA) scheme, including the means of couples, is set out in Part 2 of the Third Schedule of the Social Welfare Consolidated Act 2005(as amended), with the corresponding regulations set out in Chapter 6 of S.I. 142 of 2007, Social Welfare (Consolidated Claims, Payments and Control) Regulations 2007(as...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rural Social Scheme (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The rural social scheme (RSS) provides income support for low income farmers and those engaged in fishing who have an entitlement to specified social welfare payments. One of the key eligibility criteria for participation in the scheme is that the participant must be underemployed in their primary activity i.e. either farming or fishing, and that their earnings are insufficient to support...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Farm Assist Scheme Payments (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The farm assist scheme provides support for farmers on low incomes and is similar to jobseeker’s allowance. Farm assist recipients retain the advantages of the jobseeker’s allowance scheme such as the retention of secondary benefits and access to activation programmes. The 2016 Revised Estimates for the Department provide for expenditure of almost €85 million on the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Farm Assist Scheme Administration (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The farm assist scheme was introduced in 1999 to provide income support for low income farmers. It replaced the former smallholders’ unemployment assistance payment. In line with the then existing arrangements for unemployment assistance (including smallholders) and pre-retirement allowance, the income of farm assist recipients was exempt from class S PRSI for self-employed workers....

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Benefit Data (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Child benefit is payable in respect of children living outside the European Union where their parent(s) remain covered by Irish social insurance, with entitlement decided under Irish domestic legislation. These payments are made in circumstances where people are posted by their Irish based employers to work in other countries and continue to pay social insurance in Ireland. As at 15 May...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Services Programme (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Community Services Programme (CSP) supports community companies that operate on a community business or social enterprise model. Companies supported by the CSP generate and use income from the services they provide to pay staff, meet overhead costs and to contribute to future development. The companies must operate community or social enterprises that are able to deliver tangible...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Payments (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Disability allowance arrears have been issued to the person in question on 17 May 2016.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Domiciliary Care Allowance Data (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I am advised that statistics on applications for Domiciliary Care Allowance are not collated on a county by county basis and therefore, I am not in a position to supply the information as sought by the Deputy. The information that is collated is provided in the table. Table 1. Domiciliary Care Allowance Applications Month Received Awarded Disallowed May 2015 665 369 113 June 2015 594...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Supervisors (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: This matter is currently being considered by a high level working group set up under the auspices of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. This Group includes officials from the Departments of Public Expenditure, Social Protection and Environment, Community and Local Government as well as from Pobal and the two unions representing CE supervisors - SIPTU and IMPACT.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Applications (19 May 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The person in question appealed to the independent Social Welfare Appeals Office (SWAO) a decision by a deciding officer to disallow his application for disability allowance (DA). Following due consideration, the appeal of the person in question was disallowed by an appeals officer (AO) on 16 February 2016. He was notified of this decision in writing by the SWAO on the same date. An...