Results 2,701-2,720 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Public Procurement Policy: Public Procurement Policy (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: As I indicated in my reply to Question No. 819 of 25 January last, the Department of Social and Family Affairs is drawing up a procurement strategy, a key component of which will be an annual procurement plan, which will support the procurement strategy to ensure the Department continues to maximise the potential to deliver value for money in the area of procurement.

Written Answers — Departmental Contracts: Departmental Contracts (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The Department of Social and Family Affairs has a dedicated procurement section that advises on all aspects of procurement practice within the Department. The section maintains close contact with the Government contracts committee and the Department of Finance's national public procurement policy unit to ensure that the procurement advice that is provided is of the highest standard. It also...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: There is no provision for a statutory lump sum payment to be made on cessation of employment due to ill health. The Department of Social and Family Affairs operates a number of schemes which provide income support to people who are unfit to work due to illness or disability. The payments include disability benefit and invalidity pension, which are social insurance based schemes. Eligibility...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The maximum duration of the carer's benefit scheme is 65 weeks. Provision was made in budget 2006 to extend the duration of the scheme by nine months to two years in respect of each care recipient. To facilitate carers who will exhaust their 65 weeks of carer's benefit, I have made provision in the Social Welfare Law Reform and Pensions Bill 2006 to implement the improvement from 7 December...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The person's claim for carers allowance was refused by a deciding officer on the grounds that the care recipient was not so invalided or disabled as to require full-time care and attention as laid down in the carer's allowance legislation. The person appealed against the decision to the social welfare appeals office. The case has been referred for consideration to the appeals officer who will...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (21 Feb 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 payment or who satisfy a means test. The package is also available to carers in receipt of a carer's allowance and people with...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Social welfare programmes aim to be responsive to the needs of those who depend on income maintenance support while providing incentives to assist people to become more independent financially, particularly through employment. People, including one-parent families, are entitled to retain certain social welfare and other secondary benefits in total or in part for the duration of the employment...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Under the Government's decentralisation programme for the civil and public service, the HQ sections of the Department of Social and Family Affairs and the social welfare appeals office are scheduled to relocate to six locations — Sligo, Carrick-on-Shannon, Donegal, Buncrana, Carrickmacross and Drogheda. The Combat Poverty Agency and Comhairle, which operate under the aegis of the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: PRSI class D contributors provide social insurance coverage for permanent and pensionable employees in the public services, excluding those recruited after 6 April 1995, registered doctors and dentists employed in the Civil Service, gardaí or commissioned Army officers and members of the Army nursing service. Public servants recruited on or after 6 April 1995 are liable to pay PRSI...

Written Answers — Health Contribution: Health Contribution (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The health contribution levy was introduced by the Health Contributions Act 1979 and came into effect on 6 April of that year. The contributions are levied on income at a percentage rate set in pursuance of this and subsequent Health Contributions Acts and the income collected is paid to the Minister for Health and Children. Subject to an earnings threshold, currently €22,800 per annum, and...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: My Department currently has 66 social welfare branch offices at various locations throughout the country. Each branch office is operated and managed by a branch manager who is required to act as an agent for the Department in the area served by the office. Subject to having completed seven years satisfactory service a branch manager who retires on age, that is, at 60 or over, on health...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: The carer's allowance is a social assistance payment which provides income support to people who are providing certain older people or people with a disability with full-time care and attention and whose incomes fall below a certain limit. Provision was made in the budget to increase the income disregard on the carer's allowance means test to €580 per week for a couple from April 2006. This...

Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 442 to 445, inclusive, together. The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent supplement, is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. The purpose of the scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to...

Social Welfare Law Reform and Pensions Bill 2006: Order for Second Stage. (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I move: "That Second Stage be taken now."

Social Welfare Law Reform and Pensions Bill 2006: Second Stage. (21 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." I am very pleased to introduce this, the second of two Bills intended to implement the €1.12 billion social welfare package announced last December in the budget for 2006. This substantial investment represents a €246 million, or almost 28%, increase on the 2005 package of €874 million. It brings the projected level of social welfare...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (16 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 150, 151, 160 and 161 together. The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent supplement, is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. The purpose of the scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (16 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: To qualify for an unemployment payment, a person must be available for and genuinely seeking employment. An unemployed person is required to provide information regarding his or her availability and efforts in securing full-time employment. On request, a recipient must demonstrate that he or she is making all reasonable efforts to find work and is not being unduly restrictive in terms of the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (16 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: It is generally accepted that for all people in working age households, the main route out of poverty is through employment. In the case of lone parents, the income disregards put in place in 1997 allowed for income up to €146.50 to be disregarded as means, with lone parents with income between €146.50 and €293 per week still being eligible for a reduced rate of OFP. I believe that...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (16 Feb 2006)

Séamus Brennan: Financial support paid to lone parents is made through my Department's one parent family payment, which was established in 1997 to provide income for lone parents, while allowing substantial income disregards for those lone parents in a position to return to employment. The income disregards currently allow for income up to €146.50 to be disregarded as means, with lone parents having income...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (16 Feb 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 executive has advised that it received an application for rent supplement from the person concerned on 9 February 2006 and that it has...