Results 3,001-3,020 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 17, 18, 84 and 91 together. The Government acknowledges that the risk of poverty tends to be higher among one parent families, larger families and those faced by long-term unemployment, due mainly to the direct costs of rearing children, including child care costs, and the opportunity costs related to the reduced earning capacity of parents, arising from their...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The EU Commission has recently published the Proposal for a Directive on Improving the Portability of Supplementary Pension Rights, commonly referred to as the pension portability directive. The purpose of the directive is to facilitate free movement of workers within and between EU member states by removing obstacles to mobility within and between member states which may be caused by present...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 20, 46 and 47 together. The free travel scheme is available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over. It is also available to carers and to people with disabilities who are in receipt of certain social welfare payments. It applies to travel within the State and cross-Border journeys between here and Northern Ireland. There have been a number of...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 22, 23, 90 and 99 together. The requirement to be habitually resident in Ireland was introduced as a qualifying condition for certain social assistance schemes and child benefit with effect from 1 May 2004. The basis for the restriction contained in the rules is the applicant's habitual residence. The effect is that a person whose habitual residence is...

Written Answers — Departmental Co-Operation: Departmental Co-Operation (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 24, 29, 37, 45, 55, 57, 68 and 94 together. Effective cross-departmental co-operation is necessary for the achievement of many of the goals, objectives and strategies identified in my Department's Statement of Strategy 2005-2007, Security with Opportunity. In some cases, such as the national anti-poverty strategy or the REACH project, my Department has the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 26, 34 and 79 together. Diet supplements are provided through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Any person who is receiving a social welfare or health service executive payment, who has been prescribed a special diet as a result of a specified medical...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My Department is pursuing a modernisation programme which aims to build on the quality service it provides at present and to ensure an excellent service is maintained into the future. The establishment of a separate agency to administer and deliver social welfare payments is one of a number of options that are under consideration as part of the public service modernisation programme. The...

Written Answers — Migrant Workers: Migrant Workers (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 30 and 63 together. I have received representations from a number of organisations including the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism, the Migrant Rights Centre of Ireland and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions concerning the exploitation of migrant workers. The position is that migrant workers qualify for social insurance benefits in...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 31, 36, 52, 74, 89, 146 and 147 together. Fuel allowances are a supplementary entitlement payable over the winter heating season to eligible people in receipt of pensions and other qualifying social welfare schemes. Some 274,000 people receive this allowance, at an aggregate cost of €85.4 million this year. In addition to the fuel allowance, over 320,000...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: It is Government policy to encourage people to participate in supplementary pension arrangements so that they can, when they retire, maintain their pre-retirement standard of living. To this end, a range of measures has been introduced in recent years including personal retirement savings accounts, PRSAs, mandatory employer PRSA access where occupational schemes are not available, and an...

Written Answers — Educational Disadvantage: Educational Disadvantage (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 33 and 58 together. My Department's back to education allowance is a second chance education opportunities scheme designed to encourage and facilitate people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the active work force. There are no specific formal arrangements currently in...

Written Answers — Computerisation Programme: Computerisation Programme (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: In July 2000, Government approved proposals by the Department for a service delivery modernisation programme or SDM. The SDM is a multi-annual programme of work involving the introduction of new technology and the replacement of legacy computer systems. It also involves the redesign of back office systems. The SDM programme is being implemented in a number of self-contained projects spanning...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The household benefits package, which comprises the electricity/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 type payment or who satisfy a means test. The package is also available to carers and people with disabilities under the age of 66 who...

Written Answers — Employment Support Services: Employment Support Services (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My Department assists and encourages the unemployed and other welfare recipients, including lone parents and people with disabilities, to return to work, training or further education through a range of measures. One such measure is the back to work allowance scheme which incentivises and encourages people to return to work by allowing them to retain part of their social welfare payment for a...

Written Answers — Computerisation Programme: Computerisation Programme (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The increase of €6.85 million to which the Deputy refers is related to an increase in the A5 estimates sub-head in the Abridged Estimates Volume or AEV. This provides for the purchase, rental and maintenance of computer equipment and related items, photocopying equipment, other office machinery, printing, binding and stationery services. The major ICT infrastructure projects planned for my...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 44 and 54 together. My Department provides for payments due to qualified adults to be paid separately in certain circumstances, for example, in case of domestic difficulty where a spouse might otherwise have no other form of income. Also for certain categories of old age non-contributory pension, where the couple are both aged 66 or over, payment is made...

Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My Department assists and encourages lone parents to return to work, training or further education through a range of measures administered by my Department's social and family support service. One significant measure is the back to work allowance scheme which incentivises and encourages people to return to work by allowing them to retain part of their social welfare payment for a period when...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Appeals: Social Welfare Appeals (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 50, 92 and 93 together. I welcome the recent report on the accessibility and fairness of the social welfare appeals system and I commend the Northside Community Law Centre for its role in commissioning it. The centre is funded by my Department and earlier this year I approved substantial additional funding for it so that it can continue its role in delivering...

Written Answers — Anti-Poverty Strategy: Anti-Poverty Strategy (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 51 and 78 together. The reduction and eventual elimination of child poverty are at the core of the strategic process to combat poverty and social exclusion, a priority shared internationally. The OECD in a report to social affairs ministers in April of this year pointed out that "children who grow up in disadvantaged households are more likely to do poorly at...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Dec 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 53 and 65 together. The number of one-parent family recipients being paid by my Department at the end of September 2005 is 79,937, the latest date for which figures are available. Included in this figure are 906 widowed persons. It is not possible to get exact statistics on the number of one parent family payment recipients for whom social welfare payments are...