Results 20,961-20,980 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Leaders' Questions (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: In terms of the debate in the House, Fianna Fáil should consider how best we should police all parts of society, with the objective of bringing criminals before the courts and putting those found guilty behind bars. That is what modern, effective policing is about.

Leaders' Questions (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: I remind Deputy Willie O'Dea that he referred to the phenomenon of people going out from urban areas. He said they used buses.

Leaders' Questions (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: Everyone in the House serving different parts of the country is aware that criminal methods have changed. People use vans and other forms of transport. The response of the Garda, in particular Garda management, has been to develop targeted policing methods to actually deal with the problem. Deputy Willie O'Dea may scoff but the fact is that anybody, whether living in an urban or rural area,...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Redundancy Payments (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: Where an eligible employee is made redundant his/her eligibility for a statutory redundancy payment is not affected by accepting a job offer with a different employer. The exception to this is where the employment was subject to a transfer of undertaking, that is, where one company assumes responsibility for another including maintaining the employee’s continuity of service. The...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Disability Allowance Appeals (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The person concerned applied for disability allowance on 2 May 2012. The application was refused on the ground that, based on the information supplied, the person was not medically suitable for disability allowance. The person was notified in writing of this decision on 23 July 2012. The person subsequently forwarded further medical evidence in support of his application which has now been...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Departmental Agencies (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The statutory bodies operating under the aegis of the Department of Social Protection are the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Board, the Pensions Ombudsman (which does not have a board) and the Social Welfare Tribunal. The Citizens Information Board and the Pensions Board have unfilled vacancies on their boards. The information sought is set out in the following table. PQ 4865/13...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Applications (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: There is no record of a rent supplement application in respect of the person concerned. If the person concerned wishes to apply for rent supplement he should complete an application form and return it to the Kildare Rents Unit, PO Box 11758, Dublin 24.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Illness Benefit Appeals (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: Payment of illness benefit, to the person concerned, was disallowed by a Deciding Officer following an examination by a Medical Assessor of the Department who expressed the opinion that she was capable of work. An appeal was opened and in the context of that appeal, her case was reviewed by a second Medical Assessor who also expressed the opinion that she was capable of work. I am informed...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Fraud (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: A key priority for the Department is to ensure that fraudulent activity within the social welfare system is vigorously prevented and combated. The Department has a number of ICT systems which have been developed over many years to enable it to pay multiple groups of clients and manage data in relation to its various schemes. These systems reliably deliver over 87 million payments yearly...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Legislative Review (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The review of Section 48 of the Pensions Act 1990 by external consultants has been completed. The findings of the review are presently under consideration and I will be bringing the report to Government in due course.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Appeals (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer having fully considered all the available evidence allowed the appeal of the person concerned by way of summary decision. The person concerned has been notified of the Appeals Officer decision. 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: Carer's Allowance Appeals (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal, by the person concerned, was registered in that office on 14 November 2012. 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. When received, the case will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Benefit Payments (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The number of families in receipt of child benefit at 31 December in each of the years 2005 to 2012 has increased from 547,540 to 608,733 and the number of beneficiaries has increased from 1,060,740 to 1,162,070 during the same period. A breakdown of these increases on an annual basis is in the following tabular statement along with the effective rates of payment and the gross expenditure in...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: Since 2005 the number of recipients of weekly payments has increased by 50.5% while the total number of beneficiaries has increased by 53.8%. Information on the total number of recipients and beneficiaries of weekly social welfare payments at 31 December in each of the years 2005 - 2012 is contained in Table 1. The rates of payment for qualified children in each of the years are detailed in...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Care Services (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The Community Employment (CE) programme is a valuable resource in the provision of a range of services to communities, including child care services. To support the delivery of these essential services, the ring-fencing and prioritisation of places for child care was introduced on Community Employment in 2002. Total CE expenditure on child care amounted to €22.4m in 2012. In order...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Applications (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: As stated in the reply to the Deputy’s previous Parliamentary Question regarding this case, my Department requires the person concerned to provide acceptable proof of having been previously living in rented accommodation for at least 183 days prior to her current claim for Rent Supplement. To date this information has not been forthcoming, and as a consequence her claim cannot be...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Benefit Applications (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The person concerned has made a child benefit claim in respect of her grandchildren who are living in her household. The children's mother, who also resides in the household, previously submitted a child benefit application, but her claim was disallowed on the grounds that she did not satisfy the habitual residence condition. She was informed of this decision, and advised of her right of...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The dietary allowance application of the person concerned was disallowed as his means were deemed to be in excess of the statutory limit. The decision to disallow the application was upheld on appeal.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: The State pension (contributory) claim of the person concerned has been reviewed. He is in receipt of the maximum personal weekly rate of €230.30 and an additional €29.80 increase for a qualified child. He also receives a fuel allowance of €20.00 per week. This is his correct overall entitlement.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Employment Support Services (31 Jan 2013)

Joan Burton: According to the records of this Department the person concerned does not have a current claim registered with this Department, and so it is not possible to determine what entitlements he may have upon a return to work. The person concerned should seek information on or call to the Employment Services Support office in Maynooth where an officer can discuss the range of opportunities which...