Results 20,921-20,940 of 28,255 for speaker:Éamon Ó Cuív

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Most of the public bodies under my remit have their own budgets and pay bills such as those for mobile telephones, so the information sought by the Deputy is not readily available in my Department. However, the information is being collated and I will communicate it to the Deputy as soon as it is available.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: For the periods in question, total mobile phone costs for my Department were as follows: 2007 €427,858 2008 €458,386 2009 €477,940 2010 €339,460 1,056 members of staff have mobile phones supplied and paid for. The nature of the work of these staff requires them to attend on site in various locations both Departmental and non-Departmental for example in the case...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The information requested is supplied in the following tabular statement. Tabular Statement RENT SUPPLEMENT EXPENDITURE 2009 - 2011 2009Expenditure€ million 2010Projected Out-Turn€ million 2011Post Budget Estimate€ million 510,751 509,200 465,540

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal from the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer who proposes to hold an oral hearing in this case. The person concerned will be informed when arrangements have been made. In order to be fair to all appellants, oral hearings are arranged in strict chronological order. There was a 46% increase in the number of appeals...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 06 December 2010. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by or on behalf of the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. These papers were received back in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 10...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The information which formed the basis of the means assessment for fuel allowance in this case was taken from the claimant's income from employment for 2009. As the Department has no evidence of cessation of the claimant's employment, and he did not indicate cessation of his employment in his claim form, income for 2010 was taken to be the same as that for 2009. If the person concerned has...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The primary objective of the Department's information policy is to ensure that all citizens are made aware of the wide range of schemes and services available and that they are kept informed of changes and improvements as they occur. The Department operates a network of some 130 Local and Branch Offices throughout the country. Each Local Office has officers who are dedicated to providing...

Written Answers — Legal Proceedings: Legal Proceedings (12 Jan 2011)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The information requested is currently being compiled within the Department and will be made available to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: We are providing for the technical feasibility to use electronic means for signing on. There are many technologies that could be used but a simple proposal we are likely to use is an electronic signing pad, where a person would physically come into the social welfare office to sign on a pad. If the machine is satisfied with the signature it will register that the person has signed. This...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The trial is to commence in 2011 with between 150 and 200 people; with approximately 300,000 people signing on in one form or another, the number is very small. We will select clients considered low risk. If we are to combat fraud we should consider people who are low and high risk, and we know from experience that perennially putting effort into low-risk people disperses efforts against...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The card will come into use.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I saw one of the new cards yesterday and they are basically of the same standard as a passport. To believe that one can get duplicate cards with the same face and signature registered electronically is like saying three or four passports can be obtained by one person at the passport office. Significant controls have been introduced with electronic issuing of passports to ensure that is not...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: As I explained in the Dáil, we are making provision to ensure every landlord will have to provide a PPS number. I have been very anxious to achieve this since I entered the Department. Other issues would arise if we were to take the step of requiring the presentation of a tax clearance certificate. The Minister of State, Deputy Finneran, and I are examining the rent supplement scheme as a...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Many issues were raised which I will try to address. The responsibility for setting and enforcing household standards rests with local authorities. If, however, a property is occupied by rent supplement tenants, it must meet the minimum standards. Regulations were introduced that allowed the HSE to refuse rent supplement for a property that does not reach the required standard. There is,...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I remember introducing a scheme in the Gaeltacht to include central heating in houses for older people. I would go into a house where there was a roaring fire but there was no thermal quality to the house and it would be perishing cold. There would be plenty of turf, probably enough to heat a much bigger house, but the heat all escaped. It is all about energy regulations. Our relationship...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: A good deal of what I want to address relates to the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Some of these changes will require legislative change. For example, the change to pay a landlord directly if that is the tenant's choice was made by writing an instruction to that effect to the community welfare officer. That option depends on each individual's circumstances....

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: All that legislation involves is writing rules through the Houses for the good of the people. If legislation is required, we should introduce it and if that has to be done on an incremental basis, so be it.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Yes, absolutely.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: The issue of anti-social behaviour will have to be examined and it is part of what we will discuss. I will not accept the Deputy's amendment today but I would like to return to this matter as an issue that must be dealt with.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Dec 2010)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Existing legislation provides the HSE with the authority to refuse, suspend or terminate payment of a rent supplement in the case of a person who has been required to deliver up possession of a dwelling provided by a housing authority or an approved body where the reasons for that requirement include anti-social behaviour or the interests of good estate management. In regard to private rented...