Results 2,961-2,980 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Eligibility (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The means test for Carer's Allowance is one of the most generous means tests in the social welfare system, most notably with regard to spouse’s earnings. Since April 2008, the income disregard has been €332.50 per week for a single person and €665 per week for a couple. This means that a couple can earn in the region of €37,500 and qualify for the maximum rate of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Eligibility (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Carer's Allowance is a means-tested payment for carers who look after certain people in need of full-time care and attention on a full time basis. As of end of July 2019, there were 82,015 people in receipt of Carer's Allowance. The projected expenditure on Carer's Allowance in 2019 is almost €840 million. A primary qualifying condition for the Carer’s Allowance payment...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Waiting Times (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all of its customers. This includes ensuring that scheme applications are processed and decisions on entitlement made as quickly as possible. Like all Government Departments and agencies, the Department is required to operate within a staff ceiling figure and a commensurate administrative staffing budget. However, I can assure...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Data (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The information requested by the Deputy, where available, is provided the following tabular statements. 2019 (January to end-August) Scheme Registered Awarded Disallowed Pending State Pension Non-Contributory 6,183 5,330 1,497 1,641 State Pension Contributory 27,548 14,297 9,486 6,509 Widow(er)'s Contributory Pension 5,204 4,026 751 427 Jobseeker's Allowance 85,606 69,377...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pensions Data (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The figures requested by the Deputy are provided in the table below. Number of applications received for Widow's, Widower's, or Surviving Civil Partner's Contributory Pensions, 2014 to date. Year Registered 2014 7,390 2015 7,707 2016 7,699 2017 7,599 2018 7,542 to end-August 2019 5,204

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions Data (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 157 and 158 together. The information requested by the Deputy is detailed in the attached tabular statements. Table 1: State Pension Non-Contributory claims received, awarded, rejected withdrawn and pending at the end of December in each of the years 2016 - 2018 and up to the end of August 2019. Registered Awarded Rejected Withdrawn Pending 2016 9,213...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Domiciliary Care Allowance Appeals (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. The number of Domiciliary Care Allowance appeals registered in 2019 to the end of August was 1,164 and the number finalised was 1,054. For the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals Data (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. The figures in the table below cover all current “live appeals” at various stages of the appeals process, including those with the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Staff Redeployment (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are made as quickly as possible. The staffing needs for all areas within the Department are continuously reviewed, taking account of workloads, management priorities and the ongoing need to respond to new increasing...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: International Agreements (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Ireland has negotiated Bilateral Social Security Agreements with 10 countries. The main purpose of these Agreements is to protect the pension rights of people who have worked and paid social security contributions in Ireland and the countries with which Ireland has such agreements. This is achieved by allowing reckonable social security contributions paid in one or more of these countries to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Carer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. I confirm that my department received an application for CA from the person concerned on 2 September 2019. The application...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Applications (25 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 165 and 166 together. The person concerned was awarded a maximum rate widow's, widower's and surviving civil partner's contributory pension with effect from 26 July 2019. Payment has issued to the person's nominated account in a financial institution and all due arrears have been paid. Fuel allowance is a means-tested payment to assist householders on...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The true purpose of the letter forms part of the control measures we carry out annually to ensure that the limited budget goes to the people who are entitled to receive it. If there is a difficulty with the wording of the letter I will certainly look at it but there is no flexibility. The 21 days allowed to respond to the letter is outlined in the letter-----

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I do not propose to accept the amendments. They relate to the new section 68I which concerns activation measures, claimants and jobseeker's benefit for the newly self-employed scheme. The measures relating to amendments Nos. 2 and 7 are precisely the same measures that apply to both jobseeker's allowance and jobseeker's benefit for the employment cohorts.They are an integral part of the...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: On the Senator's first question, these are precisely the same measures as exist for jobseeker's allowance and jobseeker's benefit for the employed. There is no deviation in respect of the wording. We will be talking about progression plans in the context of a later amendment, so I will keep some of my preamble for that amendment.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Senator is under the impression that progression plans are how Turas Nua and Seetec get paid. They do not get paid based on whether claimants sign plans. Personal progression plans are not unique to Turas Nua or Seetec. They are used in our Intreo offices and for community employment schemes, Tús schemes, JobPath, JobsPlus and JobBridge. They are used in every single scheme under...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: If one attends a meeting, one attends a meeting. We cannot say that a person did not attend a meeting just because a plan was not agreed at the end of it.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: With the Acting Chairman's indulgence, there is another amendment coming much later, amendment No. 39, again in the name of the Senator.A personal progression plan is an administrative document. It is for the individual and the case officer, be they an Intreo, community employment, Tús, rural social scheme supervisor or Turas Nua case officer. This document sets out a plan between the...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: One has a variety of meetings with one’s case officer.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: There is not a set of guidelines. To answer the Senator’s later question, they already exist and I do not need to write them again. There is no guideline that states that someone comes in on day one, a progression plan is agreed and he or she goes home at 4 p.m. It is a flowing document. We are here as the services of the State in all our forms from the ILDN, Irish local...