Results 2,141-2,160 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Information Technology: Information Technology (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 422, 423 and 425 together. Procurement in my Department, including Information and Communications Technology (ICT) procurement, is carried out in strict accordance with national regulations and guidelines and in accordance with EU directives. These do not allow for discrimination in favour of indigenous suppliers. My Department does not maintain data on the...

Written Answers — Information Technology: Information Technology (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Contracts awarded by my Department with a significant Information and Communications Technology (ICT) content vary considerably depending on the scope of what is required (e.g. numbers of locations or users or complexity of solution). The detailed information requested is currently being compiled and a letter enclosing the information will issue to the Deputy in the near future.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 426 and 433 together. The Family Income Supplement is designed to provide cash support for employees on low earnings with families. This preserves the incentive to remain in employment in circumstances where the employee might only be marginally better off than if he or she were claiming other social welfare payments. Currently in the region of 18,500...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The setting of waste management charges and the introduction of waivers or rebates in respect of waste charges is, as stated by my colleague the Minister for Environment, Heritage and Local Government, a matter for each local authority. The introduction of a national social welfare scheme to address the issue could be complex given the wide range of charging regimes and cost structures that...

Written Answers — School Meals Programme: School Meals Programme (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The school meals programme operated by my Department gives funding towards provision of food services for disadvantaged school children through two schemes. The first is the statutory urban school meals scheme, currently operated by 36 local authorities, which provides food services to primary schools. The Department jointly funds the food costs with these local authorities, who also manage...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: In Budget 2006, I was pleased to announce that I proposed to establish, in September 2006, a standardised State (Non-Contributory) Pension, replacing the old age pension and, for recipients aged 66 and over, blind pension, widow/er's pension, one parent family payment, deserted wife's allowance and prisoner's wife's allowance. All the schemes in question feature a common means disregard of...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Respite Care Grant in respect of 2006 is payable on Thursday 1 June 2006, the date on which the conditions pertaining to the Grant must be satisfied. Payment to eligible people is effected as soon as practicable after that date. To date a total of 27,631 Grants have been paid in respect of the 2006 scheme. The Grant is payable from my Department, automatically, without the need for...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Decisions on statutory social welfare schemes are made by statutorily appointed Deciding Officers of my Department or, in the case of supplementary welfare allowance, by appointed officers of the Health Service Executive. Where a customer is dissatisfied with a decision made by a Deciding Officer, s/he has a statutory right of appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office. Where a customer is...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: A cross-departmental working group established under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness (PPF) has examined the feasibility of the introduction of a cost of disability payment. The National Disability Authority, on behalf of working group and in line with its own remit, commissioned research into the feasibility of such a payment. The purpose of this research was to advise regarding the...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (4 Jul 2006)

Séamus Brennan: As the Deputy is aware, the Government has decided to transfer certain functions from the Health Service Executive (HSE) to my Department as part of the reform of the health sector. The functions being transferred to my Department include income support and maintenance schemes, together with associated resources. Over 700 Community Welfare Officers (CWOs) and some 60 Superintendent Community...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (29 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The supplementary allowance (SWA) scheme is administered on my behalf by the Community Welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE). The scheme provides assistance to any persons in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants, subject to qualifying conditions. I am very conscious of the need to facilitate persons in receipt of social...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (29 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The number of estates cases for each of the years 2000 to 2005 where the Pension Services Office of my Department raised overpayments is as follows: Year No. of cases where overpayments raised 2000 508 2001 474 2002 406 2003 388 2004 335 2005 272 My Department does not have statistics on the number of the above cases where the next-of-kin of the deceased pensioners...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (29 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The person concerned was in receipt of unemployment assistance up to 20 June 2006 when, following a review of his claim which took account of all the available evidence, the Deciding Officer disallowed the claim on the basis that he was not genuinely seeking employment. The person appealed against this decision and in accordance with the statutory requirements the relevant departmental papers...

Institutes of Technology Bill 2006: Order for Report Stage. (29 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I move: "That Report Stage be taken now."

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (28 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, provides for the payment of a rent supplement to assist eligible people who are unable to provide for their immediate accommodation needs from their own resources and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. Rent...

Written Answers — Employment Rights: Employment Rights (27 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The case to which the Deputy refers relates to Directive 80/987/EEC which provides for the protection of employees in the event of the insolvency of their employer. The High Court in the U.K. referred a case to the European Court of Justice for a preliminary ruling on whether Article 8 of this Directive requires "Member States to ensure, by whatever means necessary, that employees' accrued...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (27 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: For the purposes of social assistance schemes, property which is leased is assessable as means. In the case of property such as a second house or a commercial building, the capital value of such property is assessed. No account is taken of the net rental income, if any. There are special arrangements in place where land is leased on a short-term basis, such as the 11 month system. In this...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (27 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Christmas bonus payment was introduced in December 1980. There have been a number of developments in this initiative since its inception, including changes in the level of the bonus payment which has been at the rate of 100% over the past 6 years, the introduction of a minimum payment (EUR30 in 2005) and the extension of the categories of eligible claimants. The focus of the bonus has...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (27 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Disability allowance and carer's allowance are means tested social assistance payments. In the case of both schemes, account is taken, for means testing purposes, of the claimant's own means and, in the case of a couple, their joint means. In this regard, recipients of both disability allowance and carer's allowance are treated in the same way as recipients of all other social assistance...

Written Answers — Housing Supports: Housing Supports (27 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme administered on my behalf by the Community Welfare Division of the Health Service Executive, a weekly or monthly rent supplement is available to assist eligible people who are unable to meet their immediate accommodation needs through their own resources. The objective of the scheme is to provide a short-term income support. In recent years...