Results 3,321-3,340 of 4,893 for speaker:Séamus Brennan

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: In the programme for Government, the Government has made the needs of older people a priority with the inclusion of several commitments related specifically to older people. One of these is a commitment to increase the old age pension rate to €200 per week by 2007. Significant progress towards this objective has been made since the Government took office in 1997 with increases of up to...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, a weekly or monthly rent or mortgage interest supplement is available to assist eligible people who are unable to meet their immediate accommodation needs through their own resources. Rent and mortgage interest supplements are subject to a...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The euro-for-euro clawback to which the Deputy referred is applied, but only in respect of income exceeding the disregards and the €26 is allowed. The disregards are such that if there is an increase in one's welfare income, there is no corresponding euro-for-euro reduction in one's rent allowance. There is a need to update thresholds, disregards and limits regularly because time erodes...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Okay. It is not the only income taken into account.

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: My view was that all income was taken into account in determining eligibility——

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: ——including the carer's allowance.

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I propose to take Questions Nos. 6, 13, 23, 44, 61, 71 and 90 together. It is Government policy to encourage people to participate in occupational and private pension arrangements so 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...

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I should receive the Pensions Board report in a few weeks. I intend to publish it after the Government has considered it in order to have a debate on the options for the future. I have asked the board to think radically. I do not know what it will propose but I trust that it took on board my request not to dodge the issues. The nation needs to address this serious situation but it is not a...

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: It is exactly the amount I pay out every year in social welfare pensions. A significant amount of State money goes into the system. One figure looming large is that 500,000 women in the workforce have no provision for occupational pensions. The Government cannot allow that to continue indefinitely. That is why I am interested in the concept of mandatory pensions but I will be advised by the...

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: IBEC and ICTU are represented on the Pensions Board so to that extent they are being fully consulted and have a direct input. I will consult them directly after publication of the report to hear their responses to it. I have pressed my colleagues to include pensions on the agenda of national pay talks and partnership agreements and not focus only on workers' current requirements and...

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: A total of 55,000 people hold PRSAs. There was no formal Government target but I would have expected that at least 100,000 might have joined the scheme by now. I do not have a breakdown of tax relief between different schemes because tax breaks on pensions cover a range of schemes. I am sure it is available and broken down by scheme and I will get the figures for the Deputy. PRSAs are only...

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The Deputy is better than I am on the Bible, but with the kind of numbers facing us it will take biblical wisdom to figure out how the western world can continue to afford the decent pensions to which we should aspire.

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: As for taking action, I will publish this report. The issues are fundamental and no Government could move far in this area without an intense public debate on what people are prepared to do. Basically, one is asking people to pay now for something which they might not avail of for 30 or 40 years. That is not an easy proposition.

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I have a couple of family members in their early 20s and the least I will say is that they are living beyond their means.

Pension Provisions. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I take Deputy Crowe's point. He mentioned the Continent, but the PRSI take on the Continent is substantially greater than it is in Ireland. Taxes and the take from payroll are much higher there than in Ireland. There is greater involvement in pensions on the Continent because much of the saving there is semi-mandatory, while in Ireland, apart from the basic PRSI system which funds our State...

Departmental Staff. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: In 2004, the total number of sick days recorded in my Department, in respect of a total workforce of approximately 4,730, was 6.6% of the potential working days in the year. It was also 6.6% in 2003. The average number of sick days per employee was 13.5 working days, down from 13.6 days in 2003. Some 92.4% of the total number of sick days in 2004 were covered by medical certificates while...

Departmental Staff. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The sick leave figures in the Department are high when compared across the Civil Service. The best reason I can offer is that of the 4,730 staff, many of them are front-line staff dealing sometimes with very difficult situations in difficult areas geographically. That is one possible explanation though more work is needed to fully ascertain the situation. The Department's management...

Anti-Poverty Strategy. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: I welcome this important report produced for the Combat Poverty Agency by the Economic and Social Research Institute. Using data from a number of sources including the 2002 census, the living in Ireland survey 2000 and the national survey of housing quality 2001-02, it identified the varying incidence of poverty risk throughout the country, with the highest incidence being in the Border and...

Anti-Poverty Strategy. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: The report found that geographical location, per se, is not the main source of poverty but that the residents of certain rural areas have a higher age profile. Some urban areas experience lower levels of educational attainment, while there is a lower participation in the labour force in other regions. The combination of these factors is more significant than geographical location. I will...

Social Welfare Benefits. (27 Oct 2005)

Séamus Brennan: Following the social welfare increases awarded in last year's budget, the lowest rate of social welfare payment currently stands at €148.80 per week. Depending on their circumstances, social welfare recipients are also entitled to additions to the personal rate of payment in respect of a spouse or partner and dependent children. In the case of a two-adult household with three children, the...