Results 201-220 of 14,252 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Community Development Projects (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: I would certainly be delighted to take up the Senator's invitation. We had a very good visit in October. I am happy to go back and meet the Moneymore committee. It sounds like a fantastic committee. Once again, I wish the Senator every success on Easter Monday.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Inspections (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: I can confirm for the Deputy that there is a Memorandum of Understanding between my Department and An Garda Síochána which provides for the secondment of members of An Garda Síochána to my Department for the purposes of detecting and investigating social welfare fraud. The Memorandum of Understanding requires that any data exchange between my Department and An...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 657 and 662 together. Jobseeker's Pay-Related Benefit is a new social insurance income support which has replaced Jobseeker's Benefit for people who become fully unemployed from 31 March 2025 and who satisfy the conditions for the scheme. Pay-related benefit means that a person's rate of payment will be linked to their previous earnings, subject to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Home Help Service (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: Primary weekly social welfare payments are intended to enable recipients to meet their basic day-to-day income needs. In addition to these primary payments, my Department also provides a range of other payments on a weekly, monthly, or less frequent basis. These payments are considered secondary in nature and cannot be made available to those who are not in receipt of a primary payment. ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: As of 31 December 2024, there were 18,316 customers aged 66 years and above and receiving Half-Rate Carer's Allowance. Following clarification from the Deputy on the exact nature of the proposed measure, my officials are seeking additional data to provide the cost as soon as practicable.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: My colleague the Minister for Health has lead responsibility for the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act 2024. This legislation encompasses the regulation for the first time of a wide range of practices undertaken in this jurisdiction, including domestic altruistic surrogacy. It also provides for the regulation of future surrogacy arrangements undertaken by Irish residents in other...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: Eligibility for the Disability Allowance is not dependent on the type or category of illness or disability. Rather, entitlement to these supports is contingent on the extent to which a particular illness or disability impairs or restricts a person’s capacity to work. Disability Allowance is a payment for people who are aged between 16 and 66 with an injury, disease or disability...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: Disability Allowance is my Department's primary disability related social assistance scheme. Disability Allowance is a means-tested payment for people with a disability who are aged between 16 and 66. In order to be eligible, the disability must be expected to last for at least one year. The allowance is also subject to a means test, a medical assessment and a habitual residency...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: Capital building projects for the Department of Social Protection are delivered by the Office of Public Works (OPW). The OPW is responsible for the design, procurement, and delivery of these projects, ensuring they meet the necessary standards, requirements and value for money. My Department funds some of these OPW capital projects from its own capital budget. My Department funded the OPW...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Irish Sign Language (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Irish Sign Language (ISL) Act 2017 assigns responsibilities to the Minister for Social Protection in relation to the funding of a scheme of accreditation for ISL interpreters (Section 7) and the provision of funds to facilitate ISL users with access to specific events, services and other activities, as specified in guidelines (Section 9). The implementation of these responsibilities...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Irish Sign Language (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Irish Sign Language (ISL) Act 2017 assigns responsibilities to the Minister for Social Protection in relation to the funding of a scheme of accreditation for ISL interpreters (Section 7) and the provision of funds to facilitate ISL users with access to specific events, services and other activities, as specified in guidelines (Section 9). The implementation of these responsibilities...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: I propose to take Questions Nos. 668 and 669 together. State pension (non-contributory) is a means-tested payment for people aged 66 and over, habitually residing in the State, who do not qualify for a State pension (contributory) or who only qualify for a reduced rate contributory pension based on their social insurance record. In the means test, earnings from employment, self...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Staff (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: I wish to confirm that my department has not directly employed a forensic accountant in 2024 or 2025 to date.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Inquiries (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. An application for CA was received from the person concerned on 21 January 2025. It is a necessary condition for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Humanitarian Assistance Scheme, administered by my department through the local Community Welfare Service, was activated on the 23 January 2025 to assist householders across the country affected by Storm Éowyn. Up to close of business on Thursday 3 April, the Community Welfare Service have registered 78,212 claims for Stage 1 of the Humanitarian Assistance Scheme. Just over 31,200...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Poverty Impact Assessment (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: A Poverty Impact Assessment of age related rates for young Jobseekers was carried out and finalised in December 2020. The report is available on the Government's website. Age-related reduced rates apply to jobseekers aged 18 to 24 years in receipt of Jobseeker's Allowance to prevent long-term welfare dependency. If a young jobseeker participates in education or training, they receive...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Government is very aware of the key role that family carers play in Irish society and the challenges they face. We are fully committed to supporting carers in that role. There have been a number of significant improvements made to the income thresholds in the means test in recent years. From July this year, the weekly income disregard will increase from €450 to €625 for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Staff (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: My department has made a ministerial appointment of one Special Adviser - Mr. Craig Dwyer, who has been placed on the civil service principal-level payscale. Further to that, in my office within Department of Social Protection, the appointment of a private secretary is currently in process. At present, there is one acting private secretary at executive officer payscale level and in receipt...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (8 Apr 2025)

Dara Calleary: As of 31 December 2024, there were 46,256 individuals in receipt of the half-rate of carer's allowance. Their primary payments were as follows: Primary Payment Number of Recipients State Pension (Non-Contributory) 3561 State Pension (Non-Contributory) Increase for a Qualified Adult 484 State Pension...