Results 20,441-20,460 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Leaders' Questions (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: This always happens with Sinn Féin when it does not want to hear the truth.

Leaders' Questions (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: This always happens because Sinn Féin does not want to hear the facts. We all know what happened in Northern Ireland where the party's representatives voted to transfer the powers relating to welfare back to London in order to avoid making decisions. They then tried to claim they never had those powers. In fact, they did have those powers but they voted to transfer them back to London...

Leaders' Questions (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I cannot give the Deputy a specific commitment today. I am not in a position to make policy decisions on the hoof. Some funds are already available. For example, a payment has been made to a producer in the mushroom industry and, as part of the budget, a low-interest loan scheme to the value of €150 million is being put in place for farmers. Falls in the value of sterling have...

Leaders' Questions (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. The situation is as follows: there are no pay rises and no pay increases proposed for politicians. There have been no pay rises and no pay increases for politicians since 2008. What is happening in respect of Deputies is a restoration of some of the pay that was cut from their salaries as a consequence of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act. With...

Leaders' Questions (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Government recognises the enormous challenges that face Ireland as a consequence of Britain's decision to leave the EU, including for farmers and exporters, as a result of the currency changes the Deputy mentioned, for the tourism industry, which is so dependent on visitors from the UK, for the service industry and for individuals. As the Deputy said, what the British Government decides...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Insurance Data (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The 2017 Expenditure Report, published by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on Budget Day, provides for Social Insurance Fund (SIF) income of €9,599 million in 2017, up from the €8,883 million published late last year in the Revised Estimates Volume. The estimate for 2017 takes account of: - the trends in SIF income to date in 2016. At the end of September, SIF...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I confirm that my department received an application for carer’s allowance from the person concerned on 29 July 2016. Additional information was requested by a deciding officer on 6 October 2016. Once the information is received the application will be processed without delay and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome. I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Household Benefits Scheme (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants. The main purpose of the scheme is to provide immediate and flexible assistance for those in need who do not qualify for payment under other State schemes. The Government has provided €79.7 million for basic...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Household Benefits Scheme (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The household benefits package (HHB) comprises the electricity or gas allowance, and the free television licence. My Department will spend approximately €228 million this year on the household benefits package for over 421,000 customers. The package is generally available to people living in the State, aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Fuel Allowance Eligibility (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The person concerned has been on a Community Employment (CE) scheme since 2012. She was not in receipt of Fuel Allowance while on her Jobseeker’s payment prior to going on CE. The client concerned recently applied for a Fuel Allowance for the 2016/2017 fuel season. In accordance with the operational guidelines for the CE scheme, a client not in receipt of a Fuel Allowance prior...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: My department informs me that it has been unable to determine whether there is an application from the person concerned as the PPS Number provided does not correspond with the name provided and there are no other details supplied to allow the correct number to be traced. If your office contacts my department with the correct PPS Number and/or address details, I will be happy to give you an...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: An application for carer's allowance (CA) was received from the person concerned on 5 October 2016. The application was awarded to the person concerned on 17 October 2016 and the first payment will issue to her nominated post office on 20 October 2016. Arrears for the period 6 October 2016 to 19 October 2016 have also issued. The person concerned was notified on 17 October 2016 of this...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Appeals (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeals by the person concerned were referred to an Appeals Officer on 3rd August 2016, who will make a summary decision on the appeals 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...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: School Meals Programme (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to schools and organisations benefitting over 200,000 children at a total cost of €42 million in 2016. Budget 2017 announced an additional €5.7 million for school meals, increasing funding to €47.7 million which will benefit over 50,000 children. The objective of the scheme is to...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Administration (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The rent supplement scheme is supporting some 50,700 tenants at a cost of €267 million this year. Rent supplement is normally calculated to ensure that a person, after the payment of rent, has an income equal to the rate of supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) appropriate to their family circumstances less a minimum contribution. This minimum contribution is established as...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The State pension (contributory) is one of the State pension schemes, and its rate of payment is related to contributions made over years into the Social Insurance Fund. As such, those with a stronger attachment to the workforce, who have paid more into that fund, are more likely to be paid under that scheme. There are a number of criteria which must be satisfied in order to qualify for a...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The application for carer’s allowance was awarded to the person concerned on 18 October 2016 and the first payment will issue to her nominated bank account on 10 November 2016. Arrears of allowance due from 3 November 2015 to 9 November 2016 will issue shortly. The person concerned was notified on 18 October 2016 of this decision, the reason for it and of her right of review and...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance Payments (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: According to the records of the Department, the person concerned has not as yet submitted an application for a separate payment in respect of her spouse’s jobseeker’s allowance claim. She has been contacted today and requested to call to her local office in order to deal with this request as a matter of urgency. A separate payment will be processed on receipt of a written...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: According to the records of this Department no recent application for a jobseekers benefit or jobseekers allowance payment has been made by the person concerned. It is open to the person concerned to call to their local Department of Social Protection Branch Office to make an application for a jobseekers payment. I hope this clarifies the matter for the deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (20 Oct 2016)

Leo Varadkar: My department informs me that there is no record of an application for carer’s allowance from the person concerned. Accordingly, I have arranged for an application form (CR1) to issue, which the person concerned should complete and return as soon as possible, in order that her entitlement to CA can be determined. If she has already submitted an application in the past few days, there...