Results 26,361-26,380 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: In assessing weekly family income for the purposes of the family income supplement (FIS) most weekly social welfare payments are taken into account when means are assessed. This budget measure relating to the inclusion of carer's benefit or carer's allowance payments in the income assessment for FIS is designed to bring the treatment of carer's allowance and carer's benefit into line with...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 2 February 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 due course to an...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 24 August 2011. 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. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 21...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Fraud: Social Welfare Fraud (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 158, 159, 163 and 166 together. Fraud and error surveys are an integral part of the Department's overall approach to control and tackling social welfare fraud. They provide the Department with an indicator of the estimated risk of non-compliance with scheme rules within the specific schemes surveyed and enable it to enhance procedures and processes to build...

Seanad: Social Welfare Code (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: As Senator Landy stated self-employed persons are liable for PRSI at the class S rate of 4%. This entitles them to access long-term benefits such as the State pension contributory and widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's pension contributory. Ordinary employees who have access to the full range of social insurance benefits pay class A PRSI at the rate of 4%. In addition, their...

Seanad: Social Welfare Code (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: This time last year we were in the run-up to voting day of the general election. One of the most memorable features of the election campaign for Members on all sides and one of the saddest things was the number of people in construction who were involved in good firms which gave good employment and who found that everything had disappeared. Many of these are the people to which Senator...

Seanad: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I thank Senator Conway for raising this issue. Disability allowance is a means-tested payment for people with a specified disability whose income falls below certain limits and who are aged 16 and are under 66 and who are deemed to be habitually resident in the State. The qualifying conditions for disability allowance are provided for under Part 3 Chapter 10 of the Social Welfare...

Seanad: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I will ask the officials if it is possible to arrange that. I would like to stress again that with regard to disability, the decisions are made on medical grounds and made by medical people. This case has been considered a number of time and it is not the social welfare general staff who have made the decision. The decision has been made on medical grounds. However, I will certainly...

Seanad: Community Mental Health (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I thank Senator Clune for raising this important issue, which affects a large number of young girls, in particular, and families. I am responding on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, who is responsible for these matters. I am pleased to have an opportunity to confirm to the House that it is planned that some of the additional funding that was allocated to the mental...

Seanad: Community Mental Health (22 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I concur with what Senator Clune said about BodyWhys. I know of families that have been affected by eating disorders. It is an incredibly painful issue not only for the individual, but also for the members of his or her family, who feel helpless they watch as an active and lovely young child growing into somebody with a difficult eating disorder. I thank the Senator for raising the issue.

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I would refer the Deputies to my reply to Questions Nos. 99, 89 and 102 on 1 December 2011. The position remains unchanged.

Written Answers — Community Development: Community Development (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: It was my understanding that the matters raised in correspondence received from the Deputy in regard to Lehanmore Community Co-operative Society had been resolved and that a solution acceptable to the management board had been agreed and sanctioned in the latter months of 2010. Under the Community Service Programme (CSP), a three year contract is in place until 31 December 2013. Under the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (21 Feb 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. An invalidity pension claim in respect of the person concerned was disallowed on the grounds that she is not considered to be permanently incapable of work. She was notified of this decision on 1st December 2010. The person...

Written Answers — Departmental Offices: Departmental Offices (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: I wish to advise the Deputy that all Departmental staff have access to the internet and e-mail to support them in carrying out their work.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The primary purpose of the redundancy payments scheme is to compensate workers, under the Redundancy Payments Acts, 1967 to 2011, for the loss of their jobs by reason of redundancy. Compensation is based on the worker's length of reckonable service and reckonable weekly remuneration, subject to a ceiling of €600 per week. It is the responsibility of the employers to pay statutory...

Written Answers — Community Employment Schemes: Community Employment Schemes (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: As indicated, my Department will continue to provide funding for all Community Employment schemes while the financial review is underway. This review will be completed at the end of March 2012. Department officials are meeting with projects on an individual basis and making the necessary arrangements in relation to short term funding issues. This funding is being met from within the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The person concerned was paid jobseeker's benefit from 15 December 2008 to 30 September 2009 when she commenced a VTOS course. While on the VTOS course she received a weekly training allowance equivalent to the maximum personal rate of jobseeker's benefit plus an increase in respect of a qualified child. The person concerned applied for one parent family payment from 17 September 2009. Her...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 3rd December 2011. 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. These papers were received in the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 10th ...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The National Internship Scheme is currently limited to individuals who are currently on the Live Register and have been in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance/Benefit or are signing on for credits for at least 3 of the last 6 months. Given the scale of the unemployment crisis, it is important that as employment opportunities become available they are taken up by those on the Live Register. The...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Feb 2012)

Joan Burton: The person concerned made an application for rent supplement on the 25th of January 2012. He was required to reduce his rent to the limit applicable to a single person. The person concerned is not the primary carer of the child and is not in receipt of a child dependant allowance on his current FÁS payment. The person concerned has no history of providing rental accommodation at the higher...