Results 2,241-2,260 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: In the long run, the scheme which has been agreed between employers and employees will be better for workers and their families. Currently, approximately 65,000 people are in the scheme, while 80,000 are eligible to join it. Deputies will be aware that a high degree of self-employment exists within the industry, which in itself causes further difficulties. I have suggested that employers who...

Social Welfare Benefits. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The recent value for money examination undertaken by the Comptroller and Auditor General looked at the rent supplement scheme during the period 2000-05. It did not examine the overall supplementary welfare allowance scheme. The report found that expenditure rose substantially during that period, reaching €369 million in 2005, while recipient numbers rose by 38% to more than 60,000. One...

Social Welfare Benefits. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The first question I have is on rent supplement. If the House is agreed I shall complete this question and return to Question No. 45.

Social Welfare Benefits. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The first question listed on the Order Paper concerns checks and balances in the operation in the Department. These questions are out of order, so I shall obviously have to work with them. The first question put down for me today deals with checks and balances. I shall continue with my reply to that one, if that is all right. The primary objective of the Department's information policy is to...

Social Welfare Benefits. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Nobody should receive a payment to which he or she is not entitled. People sometimes retain payments to which they have lost entitlement owing to increased income and so on. They are required to notify the Department of such information and sometimes they fail to do so. We recovered in excess of €400 million from our different checks, balances, surveys and control measures to ensure that...

Social Welfare Benefits. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Absolutely. The Department takes a strong line on that. We must distinguish between outright fraud, where people set out to give the Department false information or fail to give information, and genuine departmental errors or errors made by the applicant. The Deputy has regularly asked me about the money we spend on our computer systems. He is probably surprised how significant it is. A huge...

Anti-Poverty Strategy. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: This question relates to a study, the title of which includes the words "Day In, Day Out" which is a good phrase to use in regard to politics. I recently launched the Combat Poverty Agency study on the dynamics of child poverty. The study's key findings are that children tend to move in and out of poverty and that child poverty, and its duration, are affected by a wide range of factors,...

Anti-Poverty Strategy. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I do not disagree with the sentiments expressed by the Deputy. My absolute policy priority is child poverty. It is way ahead of all the other responsibilities I have, for which I make no apology, because at the start of the 21st century, as the Deputy said, even one child living in poverty is one child too many. The debate that has been raging about statistics is one with which I must contend...

Anti-Poverty Strategy. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: That question relates to the Pensions Board. Before I take it, I wish to advise the House that I do not have a prepared answer for Question No. 48, for which I apologise. There must have been some confusion as a result of a postponement last week, which is totally on my side. I apologise to the House for that and I can deal with this matter at another time.

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Pensions Board was asked to review, in consultation with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, the position and regulation of income continuance plans. These products often interact with occupational pension schemes and it was considered necessary to establish the facts of the situation and to clarify the position for the bodies with an interest in this area, namely, my...

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Watson Wyatt report found that 238,000 people are insured under these plans, with 85% of the plans arranged through employer sponsored or voluntary groups. I am anxious that the schemes come under some form of monitoring and regulation. The report recommended that they be brought under the Insurance Ombudsman, now called the Financial Services Ombudsman. My Department and the Department...

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: That is often the case. They are often a bolt-on product and part of it. However, for the moment we are treating them as insurance products and that is the reason we are considering sending the issue not to the Pensions Ombudsman but to the Financial Services Ombudsman. That is the route we will take and I trust it will make a difference. More than 200,000 people are involved and their...

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: These insurance policies are essentially private arrangements entered into between employer and employee. I will examine whether the ombudsman can play a role with regard to the existing stock, but I doubt we can make much progress in that area because retrospection is difficult when establishing new responsibilities. That said, it may be open to me to ask the ombudsman, when he takes...

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I do not have a formal reply, but I am happy to deal with the question, if the Deputy wishes.

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The issue of reassessing savings derived from means-tested non-contributory pension payments when reviewing estate cases has been discussed many times and the Department continues to study and examine the situation. Deputies have put the case that, where people with savings from their non-contributory pensions die and their estate is examined, we should find some way to disregard the block of...

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I am not particularly aware of the specific case, but given that the Deputy has raised it, I will make a point of studying it. The Deputy might be aware that I am examining the area of non-contributory policy in any case. As I said to the committee last week, the number of people on non-contributory pensions is reducing each year and obviously those on contributory pensions is increasing...

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I will study the case in question and find what lesson can be learnt. If all the payments come from means-tested payments, that should not lead to a claw-back in most cases.

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I will look at how it operates in practice. In principle if savings come from means-tested payments, they should not be of such a scale as to necessitate a claw-back, unless the person is extremely frugal, and it is hard to be frugal on means-tested payments.

Pension Provisions. (20 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I will consider the matter. The principle is solid. Every case is considered on its merits under the present law. However, the broader area of non-contributory pensions needs examination.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (15 Jun 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The aim of the national fuel scheme is to assist householders on long-term social welfare or health service executive payments with meeting the cost of their additional heating needs during the winter season. Fuel allowances are paid for 29 weeks from end-September to mid-April. The allowance represents a contribution towards a person's normal heating expenses. The scheme has been improved in...