Results 18,881-18,900 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: As Deputies are aware, the Green Paper on Pensions outlined the challenges facing the Irish pensions system in the years ahead, including the sustainability of the system over the longer term in light of demographic change and the adequacy of contribution levels and benefits. The consultation process which followed publication of the Green Paper reflected the wide range of views and...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The Department endeavours to process applications for refunds of PRSI as efficiently as possible. However, the volume of applications for refunds of PRSI has increased dramatically in recent years; some 23,400 applications were received in 2009 compared to 14,000 in 2008 and 9,000 in 2007. The increased volume of applications has inevitably given rise to a delay in processing refund...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Question No. 118 and 813 together. Every effort is made to process claims for social welfare payments as quickly as possible. Staff in the Department are aware of the concerns of claimants who find themselves in need of a payment. Delays can occur in the processing of claims where additional information is required or where all documentation is not to hand. On means-tested...

Written Answers — Public Service Identity Cards: Public Service Identity Cards (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Legislative provisions in relation to the introduction of the Public Service Card have been included in Section 263 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 (as amended by Section 32 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2007). These specify that the Minister for Social and Family Affairs may issue a Public Service Card in the format that she deems fit, with the person's name, personal...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The Family Income Supplement is designed to provide support for people with families who are on low earnings. This preserves the incentive for them to remain in employment in circumstances where they might only be marginally better off than if they were claiming other social welfare payments. FIS is a central element of a programme of reforms targeted specifically at addressing child...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Spouses who operate in a commercial partnership may be brought into the social insurance system, subject to meeting some of the general criteria outlined as follows: · There is a written partnership agreement · Each partner writes cheques on the business accounts in their own right · There is a joint business account · It is apparent to those doing business with the partnership that a...

Written Answers — Job Facilitators: Job Facilitators (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The number of facilitators currently in place is 63. It is envisaged that this number will increase to 70 in the coming months. The facilitator service is available locally to all social welfare recipients via the local network. Facilitators are assigned to cover a geographical area. They hold open clinics and meet with people who have been referred either by the social welfare local office,...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The Department's back to education programme includes the back to education allowance (BTEA) and the part-time education option (PTEO). The back to education allowance is a second chance educational opportunities scheme for people on welfare payments who wish to participate in full time education and who would not other wise be able to do so. The allowance is paid at a standard weekly rate...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Contributions due to the Social Insurance Fund are collected in the main by the Revenue Commissioners, together with income tax due. The Department's Inspectorate, appointed under Section 250 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act 2005 is responsible, inter alia, for ensuring that employers and self employed people comply with the Act in relation to Pay Related Social Insurance...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 130 and 723 together. The Department's role is to assist social welfare recipients with heating costs, both through their basic payments and through the fuel allowance scheme and the household benefits package of electricity and gas allowances. The national fuel allowance scheme assists householders on long-term social welfare or health service executive (HSE)...

Written Answers — Commission on Taxation: Commission on Taxation (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The Commission on Taxation's report directly addresses a number of areas within my Department's broad area of responsibility, most notably in relation to the social insurance system, the taxation of retirement savings and social welfare benefits including Child Benefit. Given the very diverse nature of the issues which arise, I do not intend at this stage to present a single set of detailed...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Rent Supplement is administered on behalf of the Department of Social and Family Affairs by the Health Service Executive as part of the Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) scheme. A breakdown of Rent Supplement expenditure for individual counties is not available. However, the attached tabular statement shows the number of recipients of Rent Supplement in Dublin for the past five years....

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Social insurance contributions are not transferable between here and the UK, and vice versa. However, in accordance with EU Regulations 1408/71 and 574/72, which coordinate social security entitlements for those who have worked in more than one Member State, contributions made in the UK, and other EU countries, can be aggregated with Irish contributions to help a person qualify for pensions...

Written Answers — Registration of Births: Registration of Births (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The provisions governing the registration of births in Ireland and the issuing of certified copies of entries in the register of births (commonly known as birth certificates) are contained in the Civil Registration Act, 2004. Parents or other qualified informants may register a birth using either of the official languages of the State, and this has been the case for many years. Section 61 of...

Written Answers — Registration of Deaths: Registration of Deaths (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The provisions and procedures governing the registration of deaths in Ireland are contained in Part 5 of the Civil Registration Act, 2004. Where a death occurs in the State it is the duty of a qualified informant (normally a relative of the deceased) to attend at a registrar's office and register the death on foot of a certificate of cause of death supplied by a registered medical...

Written Answers — Civil Registration Service: Civil Registration Service (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The Civil Registration Service does record information relating to the nationality but not the citizenship of persons marrying in Ireland. Prior to the commencement of the marriage provisions of the Civil Registration Act, 2004 in November, 2007, no information was recorded in relation to nationality. There is therefore no information available in relation to the nationality of persons who...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Changes to the Treatment Benefit scheme were announced in Budget 2010. From 1st January 2010, treatments available under the scheme are limited to a free Optical and Dental examination together with the treatments previously available under the medical appliance scheme, namely hearing aids and contact lenses required for medical reasons. People who, at 31st December 2009, were undergoing a...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: As the Deputy is aware, the Green Paper on Pensions outlined the challenges facing the Irish pensions system in the years ahead, including the sustainability of the system over the longer term in light of demographic change and the adequacy of contribution levels and benefits. The consultation process which followed publication of the Green Paper reflected the wide range of views and...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: The Department does not provide forecasts on possible future pension entitlement. I have arranged for a copy of the person's PRSI contribution record, together with 'Working it Out' booklets which explain how the State Pension Transition and State Pension Contributory are calculated, to be issued to his home address.

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (19 Jan 2010)

Mary Hanafin: There are currently 4,733 posts (5,078 people) employed in the Department. The scheme is primarily aimed at Graduate and Post-Graduate levels.