Results 3,241-3,260 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: There are currently almost 88,800 people in receipt of rent supplement, an increase of 49% since the end of December 2007. The recent Supplementary Budget provided that the weekly minimum contribution payable towards rent be increased from â¬18 to â¬24 a week, with effect from 1 June 2009. It also provided that payments currently being made to existing rent supplement tenants be reduced by...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The mortgage interest supplement scheme is designed to help those who have difficulty meeting their mortgage repayment schedule where their means are insufficient to meet their needs. The scheme provides a short-term "safety net" within the overall social welfare scheme to ensure that people do not suffer hardship due to loss of employment. A supplement may be paid in respect of mortgage...
- Written Answers — Employment Support Services: Employment Support Services (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: Under the National Employment Action Plan (NEAP) all persons between the ages of 18 and 65 years who are approaching 3 months on the Live Register are identified by the Department of Social and Family Affairs and referred to FÃS for interview with a view to availing of a range of employment, training and educational options. The NEAP is not confined to particular geographical areas. The...
- Written Answers — Departmental Schemes: Departmental Schemes (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The mortgage interest supplement scheme is designed to help people whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and who have difficulty meeting their mortgage repayment schedule. The scheme provides a short-term "safety net" within the overall social welfare scheme to ensure that people do not suffer hardship due to loss of employment. A supplement may be paid in respect of mortgage...
- Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 30, 45 and 52 together. At the end of 2008, there were 1,351 defined benefit schemes subject to the funding standard. Current estimates suggest that approximately 90% of defined benefit pension schemes are in deficit. However, the full extent of the level of under-funding will not be fully apparent until all schemes carry out their next actuarial assessment...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The live register has increased to unprecedented levels as a result of the economic downturn that the country is currently experiencing. Staff and management of the Department of Social and Family Affairs are working flat out to deal with this increased claim load and to minimise the time taken to decide claims. The length of time it takes to process claims varies depending on the complexity...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: One of the goals of the social welfare system is to be responsive to the needs of employees in low-paid, casual or vulnerable employment. For example, persons who are employed for up to three days in a week may claim a jobseekers payment in respect of the remainder of the week, subject to being available for full-time work. In addition, Family Income Supplement (FIS) provides cash support...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: Since its introduction, the underlying objective of the back to education allowance (BTEA) scheme has been to equip people on social welfare payments with qualifications that will enable them to obtain employment in the labour market. It is a second chance educational opportunities scheme for people on welfare payments who wish to participate in full time education and who would not...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The welfare system makes provision for the needs of people, including people employed as miners, under the Occupational Injuries Benefit scheme. Miners who are unable to work due to an accident arising from their employment may be entitled to occupational injury benefit for the first 26 weeks of their claim. This scheme, operated by the Department, provides entitlement to benefit for people...
- Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: To date, 70 applications have been received for the incentivised scheme of early retirement from staff in the Department. The scheme remains open for applications until 1 September 2009, and while the situation is under constant review, it is not possible to conduct a full assessment on the impact of the scheme on the Department until then. Staff of the Department have been advised that,...
- Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The Government is anxious to ensure that as many people as possible can be accommodated within the social welfare pensions system, with due regard being paid to the contributory principle underlying entitlement to contributory payments and, in the case of non-contributory payments, the need to ensure that resources are directed to those who are most in need. Over the past ten years, means...
- Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: In recent months, the Government has taken several initiatives to tackle the severe difficulties being faced by members of pension schemes, particularly defined benefit schemes. These were immediate difficulties that required a quick response to help protect members' benefits. The Government introduced legislation to create a pensions insolvency payment scheme whereby members of schemes in...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: At the end of May there were 9,072 jobseeker's allowance claims coded as having been self-employed prior to making their claim. Of this number 3,393 are in payment, 554 have been disallowed and 5,125 are currently being processed. A self-employed person who was on another social welfare payment immediately prior to making their claim would not be included in these figures. Self-employed...
- Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The Special Group on Public Service Numbers and Expenditure Programmes was established by the Minister for Finance to examine current expenditure programmes in each Department and to make recommendations for reducing public service numbers so as to ensure a return to sustainable public finances. It is expected that the Group will submit its report to the Minister for Finance shortly. The...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: There is an obligation, under Social Welfare legislation, on customers to notify the Department of any change in their circumstances which may affect their entitlement to payment. Customers are informed of this requirement when notified of the decision on their claim and at subsequent reviews. When a person in receipt of a social welfare payment enters full-time permanent nursing home care...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: In order to respond effectively to the growing numbers on the Live Register and the current employment situation, it was decided in the context of the recent supplementary budget to refocus resources on the enterprise strand of the back to work allowance which supports people into self employment. These changes significantly strengthen the supports for job-seekers wishing to move to self...
- Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The Department has identified the need for over 300 posts to assist with processing claims and other essential functions in relation to the increasing Live Register. In recent months the Department has established 5 Local Office Support Units, comprising of 49 posts, in Sligo, Carrick-on-Shannon, Roscommon, Finglas and Dublin city. A further 16 Social Welfare Investigators have been assigned...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 46 and 47 together. As Deputies will be aware, the rates of child benefit have increased significantly since 2001 having trebled for the first two children and increased by over 185% for the third and subsequent children. Overall expenditure on child benefit grew from just under â¬965 million in 2001 to nearly â¬2.5 billion in 2008 as a result of these...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: There are no plans to amend the benefit and privilege rules for under 25 year olds at this time. Any further improvements to the means testing arrangements for social welfare schemes generally, including the benefit and privilege assessment arrangements for the jobseeker's allowance and supplementary welfare allowance schemes, would have to be considered in a budgetary context and having...
- Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (25 Jun 2009)
Mary Hanafin: The Estimates for the Department of Social and Family Affairs which were published on 23 April last were based, in the main, on an analysis of trends as regards likely numbers of recipients and average value of payments in 2009. The estimates for Jobseeker's Benefit, Jobseeker's Allowance and Supplementary Welfare Allowance were significantly increased from the Estimates published at the...