Results 20,841-20,860 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 394, 395 and 426 together. Self-employed persons are liable for PRSI at the Class S rate of 4% which entitles them to access long-term benefits such as State pension (contributory) and widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's pension (contributory). Ordinary employees who have access to the full range of social insurance benefits pay Class A PRSI...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance Appeals (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned together with the relevant Departmental papers and the comments of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal was received in that office on 16th January 2013. The case will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Employment Scheme Numbers (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The budgeted number of places for Community Employment (CE) at year-end 2012 was 23,300, inclusive of Supervisors. The average number of CE places utilised during 2013 was 23,087 places, inclusive of Supervisors. The number of CE places occupied at 31/12/2012 was 22,445 (inclusive of 1,364 Supervisors). Approximately two thirds of the available places are located in the Dublin region with...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The cost of procuring police clearance varies from state to state and is a matter for the jurisdiction concerned. International police certificates are necessary documentation for both CE participants and private sector pre – school childcare employees as HSE regulations apply to all childcare facilities. Community Employment Sponsoring Bodies may subsidise the cost of international...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Garda Vetting of Personnel (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: Authorised staff from the Department of Social Protection are in touch with the Garda Central Vetting Unit on a very regular basis. The process of vetting for all applicants takes from 10 – 12 weeks currently. Errors in applications can cause delays. Eighty per cent of CE applications are processed within the period outlined and 20% of applications will go over 12 weeks due to the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Youth Unemployment Numbers (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: There were 2,690 persons under 25 on the Live Register in Co. Kildare in December 2012. There are three social welfare offices in Kildare – the majority sign on at Newbridge (1,405), followed by Maynooth (869) and Athy (426). This is the most detailed level of statistics currently available for the Live Register and there are no specific figures for the mid-Kildare area. Under 25s...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Benefit Payments (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The social welfare entitlements of EU citizens who come to live and work in Ireland are governed by EU Regulations on the coordination of social security systems. A key requirement of these regulations is that EU citizens living and working here must be accorded equal treatment with Irish citizens. The regulations are viewed by the EU as an important element in the arrangements in place to...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Appeals (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The disability allowance application by the person concerned was disallowed by a Deciding Officer following an assessment by a Medical Assessor of the Department who expressed the opinion that he was medically unsuitable. An appeal was registered on 19th November 2012 and the Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that, in accordance with the statutory procedures, the relevant...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Household Benefits (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The total cost of the electricity and gas allowance in 2013 is estimated at €176 million with 405,000 recipients. The total cost of the telephone allowance in 2013 is estimated at €48 million with 395,000 recipients. Budget 2013 changed the structure of the electricity and gas allowance which is now aligned to the best average market rate currently available from energy...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Employment Support Services (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: My Department collects a wide range of data in engaging with jobseekers, which is mainly used at present to establish entitlements and for monitoring fraud and abuse. This information can also be more systematically used as a basis for evaluating progression outcomes for the Department’s customers and schemes, which is the purpose of the jobseeker’s database referred to in the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is a separate executive office with its own premises and staff which operates independently of the Department and the Minister. One of the recommendations relates to the independence of the SWAO. The appeals process has a statutory basis in both primary and secondary legislation and Appeals Officers are quasi-judicial officers and are required to be free...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Appeals (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: In 2012 a total of 26,159 disability allowance claims were decided, of these 10,400 were allowed, 14,519 were disallowed and 1,240 claims were withdrawn. According to the Social Welfare Appeals Office a total of 4,310 disability allowance appeals were determined by appeals officers during 2012 of which a total of 2,114 (49%) were allowed 95 (2%) were partially allowed and 2,101 (49%)...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Appeals (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: Partial capacity benefit was awarded, to the person concerned, following an assessment by a Medical Assessor of the Department who expressed the opinion that her restriction on capacity for work should be assessed as moderate. An appeal was opened and in the context of that appeal, her case was reviewed by a second Medical Assessor who upheld the previous opinion. I am informed by the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: Social welfare legislation does not currently provide for reimbursement to the Department by insurance companies in cases where adjustments may have been made to special damages awards on foot of social welfare payments received by plaintiffs. My Department has undertaken a substantial amount of background work on this matter including direct engagement with the Personal Injuries...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pensions Reform (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: Secure and adequate finances are one of the fundamental components of a happy and active retirement. The sustainability of the pension system is a particular concern because of the demographic challenges Ireland faces, the associated increases in pension (and other age related) costs, and the deterioration in the public finances. This means that, in the future, the task of financing...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 410, 411 and 415 together. In 2012, a total of 432,557 claims for jobseeker’s allowance, jobseeker’s benefit and one-parent family payment were received in my Department’s Local Offices. At the 31 December 2012 there were 29,556 claims (6.8% of the total received) awaiting decision. A breakdown of the number of claims awaiting a decision...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 412 and 418 together. There are currently approximately 88,000 persons in receipt of rent supplement and 14,400 in receipt of mortgage interest supplement, for which the Government has provided over €445 million in 2013. The timescale for determining applications for rent and mortgage interest supplements is dependent, among other things, on the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Benefit Waiting Times (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: Applications for Child Benefit may be processed under domestic legislation or EU legislation. There is no backlog in Child Benefit claim processing. The average processing time for claims made under domestic legislation is three weeks. At the end of December 2012, a total of 2,276 such claims were pending, of which 510 were awaiting further information from the customer. Claims processed...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Family Income Supplement Waiting Times (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The Department is committed to providing a quality service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are made as quickly as possible. FIS claims, both new and renewals received on or after 5 November 2012 are currently being processed on receipt. On 2 November 2012 there was a backlog of approximately 7,390 new...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Illness Benefit Waiting Times (5 Feb 2013)

Joan Burton: The average waiting time for illness benefit applications at week ending 28 January 2013 was less than five working days. There were 5,019 applications pending a decision on illness benefit at week ending 28 January 2013.