Results 3,041-3,060 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Medical Aids and Appliances Provision (18 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Department’s Medical Appliance scheme, which provides grants to assist in the purchase of hearing aids, is available to those who have the required number of PRSI contributions, and their dependant spouse / partners.  The number of applications for hearing aids under the scheme has been rising in recent years, from 7,500 grants paid in 2009 to 14,600 in 2018. The extension of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (18 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 11 June 2019.  The...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Disability Allowance Payments (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The full year estimated cost of increasing the rate of disability allowance by €20 per week is €166.9 million.   This cost is based on the estimated number of recipients in 2020 and is subject to change in the context of emerging trends and associated revision of these estimates.  This cost includes proportionate increases for qualified adults.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Data (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 610 to 612, inclusive, together. Rent supplement continues its vital role in supporting families and individuals in private rented accommodation, with the scheme supporting approximately 18,600 recipients for which the Government has provided €132.4 million for 2019. The strategic goal of returning rent supplement to its original purpose,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The social welfare system treats spouses, civil partners and cohabitants in the same way for the purposes of determining entitlement to income support and other payments.  The full range of social protection schemes are available to unmarried couples with children on the same basis as married couples with children. The Working Family Payment, for example, is a weekly tax-free...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) Applications (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: In late September 2018, my Department began examining the social insurance records of over 90,000 pensioners, born on or after 1 September 1946, who have a reduced rate State pension contributory entitlement based on post Budget 2012 rate-bands.  These payments are being reviewed under a new Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to pension calculation which includes provision...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Payments (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: As the Deputy is aware, the Roadmap for Pensions Reform, published last year, commits the Government to examine and develop proposals to set a formal benchmark of 34% of average earnings for the State Pension and to institute a process whereby future changes in pension rates of payment are explicitly linked to changes in consumer prices and average wages.  My Department is currently...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Treatment Benefit Scheme Eligibility (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: A person can qualify for treatment benefit in two ways, either using their own PRSI record if they have the required contributions or by using their spouse’s/partner’s record if they are financially dependent on their spouse or partner. When a person wishes to claim treatment benefit under the dependent spouse scheme, based on their spouse’s/partner’s PRSI...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Free Travel Scheme Data (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 618 and 619 together. The free travel scheme permits free travel on most CIE public transport services, Luas and a range of services offered by some 80 private operators in various parts of the country for those eligible under the scheme. The scheme is available to all people aged over 66 living permanently in the State. Applicants who are under age 66 must...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: In my Department's consideration of the draft report of the Data Protection Commission (DPC) on the Public Services Card in 2018 and the final report received by my Department in August 2019, my officials consulted with the Attorney General's Office (AGO). External counsel also contributed to the examination of both the draft and final reports. Counsel was engaged via the AGO, as is the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions Payments (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: For those people who reached state pension age since September 2012, two different methods of calculating their entitlement to a contributory state pension are used, those being the Yearly Averaging (YA) approach used since the inception of the contributory pension in 1961 and an interim Total Contributions Approach (TCA).  The customer receives the higher rate of the two...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The introduction of a Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to establishing the level of entitlement for all new state pension contributory claims was signalled by the then Government in the National Pensions Framework in 2010.  At that time it set a target date of 2020 for the implementation of TCA.  More recently, the Roadmap for Pensions Reform 2018-2023 targeted implementation...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Invalidity Pension Appeals (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, has decided to allow the appeal of the person concerned by way of a summary decision on 05 September 2019.  The person concerned has been notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision.  The Social Welfare Appeals Office has also advised me that a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Benefit Applications (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Carer's Benefit (CARB) is a PRSI based payment, made to persons who are providing full-time care and attention to a person who has such a disability that they require that level of care.   An application for CARB was received from the person concerned on 8 July 2019.  The application was awarded to the person concerned with effect from 18 July 2019 when her...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Illness Benefit Payments (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Illness benefit is a short term payment made to insured people who are unable to work due to illness.  The payment is funded by the social insurance fund (SIF) through the payment of PRSI contributions by workers and employers and, in the event of a shortfall between contributions received and benefits paid, the Exchequer.  The fund is central to Ireland’s system of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Benefit Applications (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: Carer's Benefit (CARB) is a PRSI based payment, made to a person 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. Before a decision can be made on entitlement to CARB, evidence must be provided in respect of the care recipient’s care requirement, the level of care the carer provides, the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Review (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all the evidence, disallowed the appeals of the person concerned relating to carer's allowance applications in respect of her parents by way of  summary decisions on 9 April 2019. Under social welfare legislation the decision of an Appeals Officer is final and conclusive and may...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Supervisors (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: I am currently engaging with representatives of CE supervisors to discuss issues arising following the 2008 Labour Court Recommendation.  All parties to the engagement process have agreed that the detail of the discussions should remain confidential while the engagement is ongoing and I would ask Deputies to respect these wishes and allow the talks to continue free from...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Payments (17 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. As is the case with most other means-tested social welfare payments, CA is not payable on an extended basis to or in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Money Advice and Budgeting Service Funding (17 Sep 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Citizens Information Board (CIB) is the statutory body with responsibility for the  Money Advice and Budgeting Services (MABS).  A project to restructure the governance arrangements of the MABS companies  from 51 local companies to 8 regional companies was completed towards end 2018. Following the restructure of the MABS local companies,  the Board of CIB...