Results 2,901-2,920 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Establishing an entitlement to a social welfare payment is contingent on a person satisfying the qualifying conditions of the relevant scheme. In the case of most means-tested payments that arise from the Department, it includes a requirement to be habitually resident in the country. The term "habitually resident" means that a person has to have his or her "centre of interest" in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Jobseeker's Allowance (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: We have a different view on this. Deputy Brady shares Deputy Boyd Barrett's view, but I do not. I am not sure others in the Chamber share my view, but that is widely known. It is also a view shared by the OECD and the European Union. The EU youth charter has worked. Ours is a policy which is working. I am not sure what part of the numbers do not work for Deputy Brady. The policy was...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The increase for a qualified adult is a means tested payment, payable to a State pension contributory claimant whose spouse, civil partner or cohabitant is being wholly or mainly maintained by him or her and where that qualified adult's personal means from any other source does not exceed a means test income limit. There are currently 60,635 beneficiaries of this payment. As part of my...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I am not sure what the Deputy is asking me to confirm. Just over 60,000 people are in receipt of this particular allowance. We apply control measures every year, and 10% of those in receipt of the payment are randomly selected and receive the letter, and that is what has happened. I do know what the Deputy means by "phased basis" and "the rest of them will get it shortly." We carry out...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I assume the Deputy is splitting hairs over the fact that he thinks we sent out 6,000 letters in one go. I assume what my officials meant to tell him is that we do not send out 6,000 letters in one go because we do not have the staff to receive 6,000 responses in one go. The 6,000 letters are sent out on a phased basis and we respond to people as they send the stuff back to us. There is no...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Public Services Card (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Deputy seems to think I am hiding something and that there is secret legislation hidden away in a drawer somewhere. All legislation is on the Statute Book for the Deputy or anyone else who wants to go through it. All statements made by successive Ministers when introducing these Bills and the contributions of the Opposition Deputies who were here at the time are available in the Blacks....

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Jobseeker's Allowance (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 9 and 20 together. Reduced rates for young jobseekers in receipt of jobseeker's allowance were introduced on a phased basis from 2009, in line with other EU and OECD jurisdictions, as an attempt to tackle high youth unemployment and prevent long-term welfare dependency. Receiving the maximum weekly rate without a strong incentive to engage in either...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Jobseeker's Allowance (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Deputy and I have a different view, and that is fine. He has a different perspective from the one I have. I will cite research that was not commissioned by us but undertaken by the National University of Ireland Maynooth, which is independent of all of us. Its researchers found that those 18 years old in receipt of jobseeker's allowance on the age-related reduced rates prior to 29...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Jobseeker's Allowance (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Deputy's numbers are wrong. The number people in this age category who were on the live register at the end of August this year are thankfully much lower than 21,000. They number 16,223 but they are 16,223 people too many. The reason this is not discriminatory is other options are available to them. The weekly payment is €203 for those on our training schemes; €229 for...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Fraud (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I was not aware that was what the then Minister said, but I am more concerned about my plans. We have not changed how we calculate our control measures and their results. However, I consider the sum of €41 million in deliberate fraud to be a sizeable amount of money, taking from money we could collectively spend on fuel poverty, children and schools meals, if the Deputy says that is...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Fraud (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I should have answered Deputy Jan O'Sullivan's question earlier but I ran out of time. The answer is "Yes". We have a new unit. I can only assume that as a regulator in the past the Department, in its inspections or investigations of complaints, sought to right the wrong. If it discovered in the past that an employer had wrongly classified somebody from S to A or to any other...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Public Services Card (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The reply is the same as the reply to the first question asked by Deputy O'Dea. Given that I read the first half of it into the record, I will read the second half and that might answer the Deputy's questions directly. The Department will continue to use the SAFE 2 registration process and issue PSCs. It will also retain the supporting documentation collected as part of the SAFE...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Public Services Card (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: It is clear that the Deputy and I have a difference of opinion with regard to its use, and I am not going to change his mind here. However, I refer to the four magnificent words he used: "they do not need". The reason we retain the data on the identification of a person's address is that we need them. As I will probably say later this evening, we believe we have a strong legal basis to do...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Schemes (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I have never heard of pensioners being called "grey panthers" before so that is a new one on me. What I want to put on record is that both the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael manifestoes before the last general election committed to increasing the State pension by €5 each year for the lifetime of the next Government. It made it into the programme for Government and we have done that....

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Fraud (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I launched the Department's new compliance and anti-fraud strategy last week, covering the years 2019 to 2023. While it is acknowledged that the vast majority of people on social welfare are claiming the correct entitlement due to them, my Department has a duty to ensure that non-compliance in the social welfare system is minimised so that resources we have just spoken about can be directed...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Fraud (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The new strategy will build on the success of the old strategy, which saw control savings of €2.5 billion over the lifetime of the last strategy, so I am not sure where the Deputy's reference to €1 million came from. Overall, the key outputs from the 2014-18 strategy were as follows: more than 4 million control reviews carried out; €2.5 billion in savings; 94,000 reports...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Fraud (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: It might make it simple but I am not sure the outcomes would be any different for the people we serve. I believe there are anomalies in our system. For argument's sake, the cost of the disability review we undertook in last year's budget, on which I will hopefully have findings later this year or at the beginning of next year, should seek to establish that people who are living on a...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Schemes (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I did not evade the question; I answered the exact question submitted to me, which sought an update on the negotiations. As I suggested to the Deputy, the only thing I put on the record publicly in any newspapers — I do not know where he is reading what he is reading — is that my job is to make sure that, in every budget, the limited funds I get, whether they are small or big,...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Schemes (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The answer is "Yes". I am well able to do it. I hope that the last two budgets show the Deputy that we get relatively decent outcomes from the discussions. I love the idea of a children's budget except that children are not the only people in the country who are most vulnerable. Included are their parents, who in many cases are lone parents. Some of the most affected are those with...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Schemes (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: At the moment, we are being told there is no extra money. Given that I do not have the ability to raise revenue in my Department, I am at the mercy of others. I am, however, very aware of what I need to do. I am certainly not shy about asking for what I want and I value the Deputy's support.