Results 3,001-3,020 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Youth Unemployment Data (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Government policy to reduce unemployment is twofold. Employment policies set out in the Action Plan for Jobs and Future Jobs Ireland strategies have created an environment in which business can succeed and has led to the creation of more than 500,000 jobs since 2012. Secondly, through the Pathways to Work strategy, my Department ensures that as many of these new jobs as possible are filled...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) Eligibility (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The interim Aggregated Contributions Method of Total Contribution Approach (TCA12) makes it easier for many post-2012 pensioners affected by the 2012 rate band changes and assessed under the yearly average model, to qualify for a higher rate of the State pension (contributory). When the Government decided, in January 2018, to announce an interim TCA option for those who had been affected...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Redundancy Payments (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The purpose of the redundancy payments scheme is to compensate employees for the loss of their jobs, where the employer is unable to pay statutory redundancy due to financial difficulties or insolvency. The scheme is funded from the Social Insurance Fund (SIF). Up to 2011, the scheme provided a rebate of 60 per cent to employers who provided statutory redundancy payments to their...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Gender Recognition (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: In July 2018, I published the Report of the Group Established to Review the Operation of the Gender Recognition Act 2015. The recommendations in the report of the Review Group involve issues that are complex and it has been necessary to take some time to take advice and consider them in detail. That said, a number of recommendations are more administrative in nature and these are currently...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Eligibility (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 513, 514 and 532 together. The Government acknowledges the important role that family carers play and is fully committed to supporting carers in that role. This commitment is recognised in both the Programme for a Partnership Government and the National Carers’ Strategy. My Department provides a range of supports to those who are caring for family...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Eligibility (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Department operates a range of means-tested social assistance payments. Social welfare legislation provides that the means test takes account of the income and assets of the person (and spouse/partner, if applicable) applying for the relevant scheme. Income and assets include income from employment, self-employment, occupational pensions, maintenance payments as well as property owned...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Working Family Payment Eligibility (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Working Family Payment (WFP) provides in-work income support for low-income employees with children. The payment is designed to preserve the financial incentive to take-up or remain in employment in circumstances where the employee might be marginally better off in employment than on social welfare payments. It also seeks to alleviate child poverty. To qualify for WFP, a person must be...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Reviews (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: 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 it pays the right person the right amount of money at the right time. Therefore, it is important that all schemes operated by my Department are subject to on-going control reviews and eligibility checks. My Department...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Brexit Issues (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Maintenance of the Common Travel Area (CTA) is one of the Government's key Brexit priorities. The CTA pre-dates both Ireland's and the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union and is not dependent on it. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in relation to the CTA was signed by the Governments of Ireland and the United Kingdom in London on the 8 May 2019. The MOU reaffirmed that...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Brexit Issues (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: My key area of concern is the impact of Brexit on those current reciprocal arrangements for social insurance (which includes pensions) and social assistance (means tested schemes linked to residency rights) and child benefit between Ireland and the UK, including Northern Ireland I understand that the UK’s Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) is an annual tax-free payment made to eligible...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: JobPath Programme (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: JobPath is a service which supports people who are long-term unemployed to secure and sustain full time paid employment. Two companies, Seetec and Turas Nua, have been contracted by my Department to deliver the service. The JobPath employment service commenced in 2015 and, under the terms of the contracts signed with the providers was to run for at least six years comprising two...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Legal advice, whether from the Attorney General's Office or from external counsel, is privileged and it is not intended to publish the legal advice received by my Department on this matter. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The primary social welfare schemes available to individuals who have been laid off as a result of current layoffs in the meat processing industry are Jobseekers Benefit and Jobseekers Allowance. Both schemes are administered through my Department's network of Intreo Centres and Social Welfare Branch Offices throughout the country. Payment of Jobseekers Benefit and Assistance is contingent...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals Data (24 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. Operational processes, procedures and the organisation of work are continually reviewed to ensure that processing capability is maximised with specific monthly targets set for responses...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Redundancy Payments (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The purpose of the redundancy payments scheme is to compensate employees, under the Redundancy Payments Act 1967, as amended, for the loss of their jobs by reason of redundancy. Under the scheme, an eligible employee is entitled to two weeks’ pay for every year of service, plus a bonus week, subject to a gross weekly salary ceiling of €600. In order to be eligible for a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card Data (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 526 to 529, inclusive, together. In total, my Department has issued just over 4 million Public Services Cards (PSC), of which there are currently 3.2 million active PSC users. The information the Deputy has requested relating to the number of PSCs that issued during various periods are set out in the tables below: PSCs issued up to end-Oct 2017 PSCs issued...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has advised that its recent report and findings are the first of two reports on the Public Services Card (PSC) project that will issue to my Department. The DPC has stated that she will shortly be submitting to my Department a further report containing provisional findings relating to data security, arithmetic template generation (and associated...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Jobseeker's Benefit Appeals (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was referred on 13 September 2019 to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: JobPath Programme (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: JobPath is a service which supports people who are long-term unemployed to secure and sustain full time paid employment. Two companies, Seetec and Turas Nua, have been contracted by my Department to deliver the service. The JobPath employment service commenced in 2015 and, under the terms of the contracts signed with the providers was to run for at least six years comprising two...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) Eligibility (24 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: In February 2018, the Government announced a new interim Total Contribution Approach (TCA) option for state pension (contributory) for those affected by the Budget 2012 rate band changes. This interim pension calculation is based on a requirement of forty years of social insurance contributions for qualification for maximum rate pension. The measures also provide for inclusion of up to...