Results 27,341-27,360 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: They stay the same.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: To qualify for widow's, widower's and surviving civil partner's pension, the spouse or civil partner must have made 156 contributions by the date of death or before reaching 66 years of age, whichever is the earlier, and have an average of 39 paid or credited contributions in either the three or five years before the death of the spouse or civil partner or before reaching 66 years of age, or...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: This section has nothing to do with lone parent families and does not affect them at all.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: This provision brings into line an arrangement that already replies with regard to people on jobseeker's payments or illness or injury benefit. The section brings the arrangements that apply already with regard to jobseekers into the areas I have mentioned and it only applies where somebody who has one of the benefits mentioned has a spouse or civil partner who has earnings in excess of...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: I just want to explain. I understand the Senator's concern that we should limit, as far as possible, the impact of changes in arrangements for people who are very vulnerable. However, the complexity of the social welfare system is such that where we have somebody whose spouse has earnings in excess of €400, particularly where the partner is a carer, it is very likely there will be...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: They may be.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: We have.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: A question was asked about total household income. We do not have the capacity to look at total household income. In some countries, notably Austria, the social welfare system is built around total household income. This means one includes in the income calculation payments that people in farming receive, which would be a significant amount in this country in some cases. One also includes...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: The reason is that we did not build the system in that way. Instead, we built 50 or 60 separate schemes, disregards and conditionalities which vary according to the status of the individual, for example, his or her relationship, the age of children, older people and so on. What we are moving towards is a system of five parts relating to five conditions of one's life. We have the period of...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: In the context of a general discussion on the points raised by the two Senators, I agree the framing of the social welfare budget for 2012 has been exceptionally difficult. Ultimately, however, I had been left with a framework of cuts proposed by Fianna Fáil that ran between €622 million and well over €800 million. I do not suggest Fianna Fáil found implementing such measures to be...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: Due to house price inflation.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: It was four sheets of paper.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: I thank the Senator.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: Generally, they remain in employment and are working full time. These are not people on disability. They are people in work who are getting an additional pension while working.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: It does not affect existing people on the benefit.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: It is for new applicants.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: Or incidents within the Prison Service.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: The section does not affect their sick pay.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: I thank Senators for their remarks. The disablement benefit applicants who satisfy the occupational injury criteria are referred for an in-person assessment by a medical assessor of the Department. That assessor would determine the percentage loss of faculty and would be governed in the first place by the physical level of disablement suffered by a person. As an occupational benefit, there...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

Joan Burton: A couple of points were raised. Senator Thomas Byrne has referred to an existing benefit to which people have contributed as being limited. The problem with the social welfare system from a structural point of view is that the deficit in the social insurance fund for 2011 is approximately €1.9 billion. Even after taking these very difficult measures, next year the gap is likely to be...