Results 2,561-2,580 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The most recent information on earnings available from the Central Statistics Office relates to September 2005. This shows that, at that time, average industrial earnings were â¬579.32 per week. The cost of raising the social welfare pension for all those over 65 years by 1% of this figure is estimated at â¬124 million per annum. The maximum rate of the old age contributory pension is at...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The primary objective of the orphan's payments administered by my Department is to provide income support in respect of children whose parents are deceased or who are unable and have failed to provide for them. The weekly rate of payment is â¬138. This is a substantially higher rate of payment compared with other payments made by my Department in respect of children. Foster carers, on the...
- Written Answers — Departmental Correspondence: Departmental Correspondence (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: I have not met with nor have I received any representations or requests for a meeting from the Open Republic Institute.
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The person's application for carer's benefit was disallowed by a deciding officer on the grounds that the person was not engaged in remunerative employment prior to her claim as she was on a career break from the Department of Education and Science. The person appealed this decision to the social welfare appeals office and an oral hearing was held on 28 February 2006. Having considered all of...
- Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: Since taking office this Government has made the needs of older people a priority, with the inclusion of several commitments in the programme for Government aimed specifically at older people. One of these is a commitment to increase the old age pension rate to â¬200 per week by 2007. Significant progress has been made towards this objective. Pension increases in the last two budgets have...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: Deserted wife's benefit is a payment made to a woman deserted by her husband. Entitlement to payment is based on social insurance contributions paid by the wife or her husband. An earnings limit was introduced for deserted wife's benefit in 1992. The limit, which applied only to new claims after August 1992, was set at â¬12,697.38 a year, gross earnings. Where earnings are in excess of...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The farm assist scheme was introduced in 1999 as an income support scheme for low income farmers. It is a means tested scheme with a more favourable method of assessment, including disregards in respect of qualified children, than had applied under the previous smallholders' unemployment assistance scheme. The scheme was further improved in two ways from 2000. The child-related income...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent 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. The number of recipients of rent supplement from 2001 to 17 March 2006 is shown in the tabular statement. At the end of 2001 the numbers in...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent 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. The purpose of the scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: I do not like going to court for cases involving social welfare because it is not normally a fair battle between social welfare recipients and the State. I do not like being there and, subject to the advice I receive from the Attorney General's office, it is not my intention to appeal. I had better wait for the formal advice from his office but, as a policy, I am opposed to appealing, unless...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: If that is the case, I will revert to the House. However, as a matter of policy, it is not my intention to appeal. If the payments were confined to the 172 people who initiated proceedings in the court, I would be disposed to help but the total number of back to education scheme participants in 2003 and 2004 was 5,458. I need to be a little circumspect before I agree to make paymentsââ
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The number involved is more than 5,000. A total of 172 added their names to the application to the High Court and the case of one person was adjudicated on. I, therefore, must be a little circumspect before I rush into making back payments or compensation payments, particularly when legal issues pertain. I have an open mind about paying participants on the scheme during the summer and I will...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: There are approximately 7,500 people on this scheme and expenditure on it was â¬48 million last year. I agree the back to education scheme is a very good one. It was designed to help those who have not worked for some time to improve their employability and job readiness. More than 5,000 people were on the scheme during the 2003-04 academic year who might have had an expectation of getting...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: All carers in receipt of carer's allowance, carer's benefit, prescribed relative allowance or constant attendance allowance will automatically receive the respite care grant from my Department next June without having to apply for it. Similarly, carers who get domiciliary care allowance from the Health Service Executive will automatically receive the respite care grant from the HSE. The...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The feedback from the family income supplement campaign, based on initial figures I received this morning, is quite good. I wanted to see to what extent the television and radio advertising was effective and we received an immediate extra 1,000 applications for the family income supplement. I will have more comprehensive figures in a week or two and will supply them to Deputies. There is no...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The report referred to by the Deputy is on a study of the cost of healthy eating and specialised diets undertaken on behalf of the Department by the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute, the findings of which were published on 23 January 2006. The report is the most comprehensive review of specialised diets and food costs carried out in Ireland in the past decade. It has brought an...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: I thank Dr. Muireann Cullen of the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute, who did a superb job with the study, modernising it and bringing the information up to date. We are talking here about special diets, the typical additional cost of which, according to the report, is between â¬3 and â¬8 per week, depending on the type of diet concerned. At the end of 2005, there were 11,723 people in...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: I note the Deputy's comments. The study showed convenience stores are the most expensive places to purchase specialised foods while the large low-cost stores offer the best prices. It also highlighted that a person on the lowest social welfare income can meet the costs. I understand the difficulty for people in remote areas not having access to large convenience stores. The estimated extra...
- Social Welfare Benefits. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: There is much detailed information on diets prescribed for the purpose of diet supplement. These include diets for diabetics, low-fat, low-cholesterol, high-fibre, gluten-free, low-lactose and milk-free diets. For people under 18 years, it includes high-fibre, diabetic, high-protein, gluten-free, low-protein and low-lactose, modified-protein, high-calorie diets. The revised scheme is not for...
- Departmental Appointments. (22 Mar 2006)
Séamus Brennan: The five statutory agencies operating under the aegis of the Department of Social and Family Affairs are the Pensions Board, the Combat Poverty Agency, Comhairle, the Family Support Agency and the Social Welfare Tribunal. In addition the Pensions Ombudsman comes under the remit of the Department. Since my appointment as Minister for Social and Family Affairs, I have appointed 17 persons to...