Results 23,801-23,820 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Written Answers — Invalidity Pension: Invalidity Pension (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 1 June 2012. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the appeal in question will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a...

Written Answers — Invalidity Pension: Invalidity Pension (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the appeal from the person concerned was referred to an Appeals Officer who proposes to hold an oral hearing in this case on 16 August 2012. The person concerned has been notified of the arrangements for the hearing. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The Deputy will be aware of the sustainability issues regarding pensions in Ireland and the pension reform measures under way to try to address some of these issues including the raising of State pension age which has already been provided for in primary legislation. While the current State pension age of 66 remains, the State pension (transition) which applies for one year for persons of...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 330, 332, 334, 336, 338, 339 and 343 together. I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that, from about early 2009 the number of appeals received by that Office has increased dramatically and by 2011 had more than doubled from an average of 15,000 pa to 32,000. A further 18,826 have been received for the first half on this year. The pressure...

Written Answers — Supplementary Welfare Allowance: Supplementary Welfare Allowance (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: More than 95% of basic supplementary welfare allowance applications are decided on and paid within a week. The timescale for determining applications is dependent, among other things, on the availability of the required information, such as details of the applicant's income, bank statements etc. The provision of a prompt service is a major objective for the Department's staff dealing with...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 335, 337, 373 and 374 together. The Department is committed to delivering the best possible service to its customers and to ensuring that claims are processed as efficiently and expeditiously as possible. Processing times vary across schemes, depending on the differing qualification criteria. Means-tested payments such as State pension (non-contributory)...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer having fully considered all the available evidence disallowed the appeal of the person concerned by way of summary decision. The person concerned was notified of the Appeals Officer decision on 13th July 2012. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the...

Written Answers — Invalidity Pension: Invalidity Pension (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: Invalidity pension is a payment for people who are permanently incapable of work because of illness or incapacity and who satisfy the contribution conditions. This department received a claim for invalidity pension for the person concerned. The medical evidence provided by the claimant in support of her claim was examined by a medical assessor who was of the opinion that the person concerned...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: A statement of the contributions paid and credited on behalf of the person concerned, as shown in the records of the Department, has been issued to the Deputy's office. The statement, which should now be with the Deputy, provides a breakdown of her record by year and shows the number of contributions paid in each year.

Written Answers — Carer's Allowance: Carer's Allowance (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: I confirm that the department is in receipt of an application for carer's allowance from the person in question. On completion of the necessary investigations relating to all aspects of the case a decision will be made and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.

Written Answers — Carer's Allowance: Carer's Allowance (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: I confirm that the department is in receipt of an application for carer's allowance from the person in question. On completion of the necessary investigations relating to all aspects of the case a decision will be made and the person concerned will be notified directly of the outcome.

Written Answers — Invalidity Pension: Invalidity Pension (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 13th April 2012. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the case in question will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a...

Written Answers — Disability Allowance: Disability Allowance (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The number of appeals on hands for all scheme types at the end of June 2012 is listed in Table 1. At the end of June 2012 there were 4,122 appeals of Disability Allowance pending. The current processing times for all scheme types are listed in Table 2. Generally the vast majority of cases fall within average times but extenuating factors, often outside of the control of the Social Welfare...

Written Answers — Rent Supplement Scheme: Rent Supplement Scheme (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The family concerned were evicted from their rented accommodation at which point the rent supplement payment ceased. They were advised to seek alternative accommodation provided it was within the rent limit for this area of €900 per month. They should send their rent supplement application as soon as possible to the Rent Supplement Unit, P.O.Box 11758, Dublin 24 and/or phone 1800 201 698...

Written Answers — Rent Supplement Scheme: Rent Supplement Scheme (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 350 and 351 together. The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term income support, to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. The aim is to provide short term assistance, and not to act...

Written Answers — Disability Allowance: Disability Allowance (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: Domiciliary care allowance (DCA) can be paid in respect of a child with a severe disability until the child reaches 16 years. As the child concerned will be 16 years in October 2012, her carer was notified by correspondence dated 28th June 2012 that DCA would be paid up to and including October 2012. At that point, she may apply for disability allowance (DA) in her own right. Details of...

Written Answers — Child Benefit Eligibility: Child Benefit Eligibility (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The Department contacts parents who receive child benefit (CB) payments on a regular basis as part of its on-going customer service and control work. Parents are asked to verify that they continue to reside in Ireland, that they satisfy the conditions for receipt of CB while also confirming that all details held by the Department are correct. The frequency with which review certificates...

Written Answers — Invalidity Pension: Invalidity Pension (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 30 May 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 appeal in question will be referred in to an Appeals Officer...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: The pension rights of scheme members are protected through trust law and by provisions in the Pensions Act 1990. Under trust law, trustees of occupational pension schemes have the principal responsibility for ensuring that the entitlements of the members are adequately protected and that they receive the pensions due to them. In addition to the safeguards provided by trust law, the Pensions...

Written Answers — Departmental Agencies: Departmental Agencies (17 Jul 2012)

Joan Burton: Under Section 18 of the Pensions Act 1990, the Pensions Board has the power to enter the premises of any employer, trustee, registered administrator, personal retirement savings account (PRSA) provider or agent and make such examination or inquiry as may be necessary to determine whether the provisions of the Pensions Act are being complied with. Where the premises is a private dwelling...