Results 2,501-2,520 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (30 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes mortgage interest supplement, is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Neither I nor my Department has any function in decisions on individual claims. A mortgage interest supplement provides short-term income support to eligible people who are unable to meet their mortgage...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (30 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: There were no staff in my Department on suspension with pay on 31 December 2004. One member of staff was on suspension without pay under section 13 of the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956. On 31 December 2005, three staff of the Department were on suspension without pay under the section of the Act referred to above. There were no staff members on suspension with pay on that date. A payment...

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

Séamus Brennan: The household benefits package, which comprises the electricity and gas allowance, telephone allowance and television licence schemes, is generally available to people living permanently in the State, aged 66 years or over, who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test. Public servants who pay full PRSI, subject to meeting the normal contribution conditions...

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

Séamus Brennan: Recipients of one-parent family payments are obliged to notify my Department when there is a change in their circumstances, for example, when their earnings increase. Overpayments may arise where beneficiaries fail to notify my Department of an increase in their weekly earnings. My Department has no record of having received any notification from the person concerned in relation to increased...

Death of Former Member: Expressions of Sympathy. (29 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I had the privilege of standing with Ruairí Brugha for Dáil Éireann in South Dublin, and I served with him in Seanad Éireann for many years. It was there I learned of his integrity, his love of Ireland and Fianna Fáil, and his embracing of republicanism as a peaceful and respectful doctrine. That shone through in everything he did. His commitment to Irish unity did not change in all his...

Written Answers — General Register: General Register (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: As part of the public services broker programme, the application for life event certificates, ALEC, service has been developed as an on-line service by REACH in partnership with the General Register Office, GRO. The ALEC service enables customers anywhere in the world to purchase life event certificates on-line using their credit cards. The certificates are delivered via the postal services...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Entitlement to maternity benefit for employees is contingent on entitlement to maternity leave — legislation which is the responsibility of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Where women have accrued the requisite number of contributions required to establish entitlement and they are certified by their employers as entitled to statutory maternity leave, maternity benefit is...

Written Answers — Commemorative Events: Commemorative Events (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I plan to attend the Government's two official commemorations on Easter Sunday, April 16, the parade in Dublin and the reception in Dublin Castle that evening. It is also my intention to attend, as a Deputy, my party's commemoration ceremony on Sunday, April 23 in Arbour Hill. I hope also to visit the exhibition in the National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, entitled Easter Rising:...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare staff of the Health Service Executive is one of a number of social assistance schemes which, with effect from 1 May 2004, is subject to a habitual residence condition. The effect of the condition is that a person whose habitual residence is deemed to be other than in this State or the common...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Under the Government's programme of decentralisation, 230 posts in the Department are to relocate to Donegal town and 120 posts to Buncrana. The decentralisation implementation group, DIG, recommended to the Minister for Finance the locations and organisations to be included in the first phase of the programme and those to be regarded as potential early movers. The locations designated to be...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: A claim for unemployment assistance by the person concerned was disallowed by the deciding officer on the grounds that she has not shown there was good cause for delay in making her claim and that she has failed to prove that she was unemployed, capable, available and genuinely seeking employment during the period in question. She has been in receipt of unemployment assistance since 8...

Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, provides assistance to people who are over-indebted and need intensive help and advice in coping with debt problems. There are 52 independent companies nationwide operating the service and support is provided by MABS National Development Limited, a support company for the service. MABS was established on a pilot basis in 1992 and it has now grown...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Allowances: Social Welfare Allowances (28 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Rent supplements are available to eligible people through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Neither I nor my Department has any function in determining entitlement in individual cases. Under section 190(1) of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act 2001, people in full-time education...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (23 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Missionaries who have made sufficient social insurance contributions can qualify for an old age contributory pension. Contributory pensions are payable abroad and so missionaries who qualify and who chose to settle overseas can receive a payment. Non-contributory pensions are only payable where a person is resident in this country. Accordingly, missionaries who return here and who satisfy the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: An application for family income supplement, FIS, was received by my Department from the person concerned on 8 February 2006. One of the principal conditions for receipt of FIS is that a person must work at least 19 hours per week or 38 weeks per fortnight. Based on the information available to my Department, the person concerned was not considered to be in full-time remunerative employment,...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (23 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The free travel scheme is available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over. All carers in receipt of carer's allowance and carers of people in receipt of constant attendance or prescribed relative's allowance, regardless of their age, receive a free travel pass. It is also available to people under age 66 who are in receipt of certain disability type welfare payments, such as...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that the decisions on entitlement are issued as expeditiously as possible having regard to the eligibility conditions which apply. The main clearance time target set by my Department for carer's allowance is to decide 70% of claims within nine weeks, in...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (22 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 62, 82 and 102 together. The back to education allowance or BTEA is a second chance education opportunities scheme designed to encourage and facilitate people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the active work force. Following the decision in 2002 to discontinue payment...

Written Answers — National Partnership Agreement: National Partnership Agreement (22 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Combat Poverty Agency submission to the social partners, "Making a Decisive Impact on Poverty Through Social Partnership", is a broad ranging document which has, I understand, been forwarded to all parties to the partnership negotiations. It will, I expect, form a constructive contribution to the negotiations on a new partnership agreement. I expect that the results of this agreement will...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)

Séamus Brennan: To qualify for child benefit a child must be under 16 years — 19 years if in full-time education — and ordinarily resident in the State. The vast majority of children born in Ireland will satisfy these conditions. Child benefit is paid to the person with whom the child is normally resident, which in most cases is the child's mother. Since 1 May 2004, the new qualifying condition —...