Results 21,361-21,380 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Programme for Government Initiatives (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 25, 43 and 47 together. The recently agreed programme for a partnership government provides for a range of actions that are designed to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. One of these actions is a proposal for the Departments of Health and Social Protection to work together to pursue a “Fit for Work” programme to...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Waiting Times (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Unfortunately, there are currently delays in the processing of new carer's allowance (CA) applications. The Department is working hard to improve the processing times for CA applications. Additional resources have been applied to assist with these increases and overtime is being applied where appropriate. The continuing increase in the number of applications being received is a key factor...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The State pension contributory (SPC) is an old-age benefit, payable from age 66. Eligibility is not dependent upon the recipient retiring from employment, and there is no retirement pension. The SPC is a very valuable benefit and is the bedrock of the Irish pension system. Therefore, it is important to ensure that those qualifying have made a sustained contribution to the Social...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Services Programme (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The community services programme (CSP) is designed to address gaps in the delivery of key local services, to tackle disadvantage and to ensure that community facilities are utilised. It provides valuable resourcing for service delivery undertaken by not-for-profit companies and co-operatives in communities around the country. Service providers must operate community or social enterprises...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Live Register Data (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The provision of live register statistics is primarily the responsibility of the Central Statistics Office. It is not possible for the Department of Social Protection to accurately segregate Castleisland based customers from other customers served from our Tralee office for statistical purposes. Services for the unemployed in Kerry are provided from a network of 7 offices in the county....

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pension Provisions (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The State pension contributory is a very valuable benefit and is the bedrock of the Irish pension system. Therefore, it is important to ensure that those qualifying have made a sustained contribution to the Social Insurance Fund over their working lives. To ensure that the individual can maximise their entitlement to a State pension, all contributions paid or credited over their working...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pension Provisions (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy will appreciate that it is not appropriate for me to comment on matters relating to an individual pension scheme. In the first instance it is the responsibility of the trustees of a pension scheme to ensure compliance with the funding standard and other obligations set out in the Pensions Act 1990, as amended. The Pensions Authority is the regulatory body charged with the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance Payments (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: In line with other EU and OECD jurisdictions where such measures feature in their social welfare systems, reduced rates for younger jobseeker’s allowance recipients were first introduced in 2009. These were further extended in subsequent budgets and now apply to jobseeker’s allowance recipients under 26 years of age. This is a targeted, non-discriminatory, measure aimed at...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Exceptional Needs Payments (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Under SWA, the Department of Social Protection can make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off expenditure, which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. An urgent needs payment (UNP) is a once-off payment made to persons who would not normally qualify for SWA but who have an urgent need which they cannot meet from...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: One-Parent Family Payment (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: My Department previously indicated its intention to review the current maintenance and liable relative procedures since the introduction of the one-parent family payment reforms. Officials in my Department are actively working on the detailed review required to progress this issue. This is a complex area that is not limited to the potential extension of these provisions to the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Programme for Government contains commitments to improve the take-home pay of families on low-incomes. One of the most significant is the proposed ‘Working Family Payment’ targeted at low-income families. Over the course of the next six months, we will develop proposals for the new payment. In doing so, we will be guided by two principles. First, that it should ensure...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Labour Activation Measures (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Ireland’s Public Employment Service (PES) is managed by the Department of Social Protection (DSP) and delivered directly by its own Intreo service as well as by contracted private companies under the JobPath service; the Local Employment Service (LES) and Job Clubs. The JobPath element of the service is a new approach to employment activation designed to support long-term unemployed...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments Administration (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The Programme for Government clearly states the Government’s commitment to actively encouraging payments at Post Offices. While responsibility for An Post and the Post Office Network rests with my colleagues the Minister for Communications, Climate Change and Natural Resources and the Minister for Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and Gaeltacht, I wish to highlight the size of...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Services Programme (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The community services programme (CSP) provides financial support to community companies that provide revenue generating services of a social inclusion nature. Many of these companies are also funded from other sources and generate revenue from the public use of their facilities and services. The contribution from the CSP is towards the wage costs of the companies and is on the basis that...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Bereavement Grant (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: The overall concern in recent Budgets has been to protect primary social welfare rates. Abolishing the bereavement grant provided an annual saving of €22 million. This allowed the Department to protect other more fundamental social welfare payments such as the State pension. There are a range of supports available for people following bereavement which provide more significant...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Waiting Times (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: My Department is working hard to improve the processing times for applications and the quality of decisions given. I can assure the Deputy that reducing waiting times on applications is a key priority. As part of its programme of service delivery modernisation, a range of initiatives aimed at streamlining the processing of claims, supported by modern technology, have been implemented by...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: One-Parent Family Payment (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: My Department will be spending an estimated €500 million on the one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme in 2016. The scheme currently supports over 41,000 recipients and almost 74,300 children. The reforms to the one-parent family payment scheme were introduced to address long-term social welfare income support dependency. The reforms provide enhanced access to the...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Operation (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: On 26 May 2016, the Sponsor board of Blanchardstown Centre for the Unemployed formally advised the Department that it intended to discontinue its Community Employment (CE) Scheme. On foot of this decision by the Sponsor Board, the Department has extended the scheme until 14/10/2016, by agreement with the Sponsor, to facilitate an orderly wind down of the Scheme. It is the Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: I have announced earlier this week that revised increased rent limits under the rent supplement scheme will be introduced with effect from this Friday, 1 July 2016. I can assure the Deputy that supports in relation to housing and the provision of financial supports, including the rent supplement scheme currently supporting some 55,000 recipients at a cost of €267 million in 2016, are...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Child Poverty (30 Jun 2016)

Leo Varadkar: Tackling poverty continues to be a priority for Government. The updated National Action Plan for Social Inclusion identifies a wide range of targeted actions and interventions to achieve the overall objective of reducing poverty. The goals include a focus on early childhood development, youth exclusion, access to the labour market, migrant integration, social housing and affordable energy....