Results 3,361-3,380 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — Employment Support Services: Employment Support Services (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The National Employment Action Plan, operated jointly with FÁS, is the main activation measure for jobseekers. It has been in operation since 1998 and has proven successful in that period in assisting people on the live register back into employment. It provides for a systematic engagement of the employment services with unemployed people. • In the period January to end of December,...

Written Answers — Employment Support Services: Employment Support Services (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The National Employment Action Plan/Job Search, operated jointly with Fás, is the main activation measure for jobseekers. This strategy provides for systematic engagement by the FÁS employment services with unemployed people and is a key element of the Government's labour market policy. Under the Plan, all persons between the ages of 18 and 65 years who is approaching 3 months on the Live...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: There is a range of education and employment supports available to people in receipt of social welfare payments. These initiatives are designed to assist them in returning to the active labour force. Included in these measures are the back to work allowance and back to education allowance schemes. In April 2009 there were 11,646 people in receipt of the back to education allowance for the...

Written Answers — Employment Support Services: Employment Support Services (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The National Employment Action Plan, operated jointly with FÁS, is the main activation measure for jobseekers. It has been in operation since 1998 and has proven successful in that period in assisting people on the live register back into employment. It provides for a systematic engagement of the employment services with unemployed people. In the period January to end of December 2008: •...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: Facilitators work closely with Fás and other agencies at national and local level, to identify appropriate training and developmental programmes social welfare recipients of working age to enhance the skills those individuals have and ultimately improve their employment chances as well as help them continue to develop personally. The facilitator service is available locally to all social...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: During the period May to December 2008 an additional 158 staff were assigned to local offices to deal with the increased volume of claims. With the exception of Cork local office all but two of these staff are now in place and arrangements are in train to assign the outstanding 2 staff. In the case of Cork local office, some of the additional posts are been covered by way of temporary...

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: May I share time with the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Dermot Ahern?

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: In 2007, the House mandated the Government by electing it and the then Taoiseach. This was on foot of a mandate from the people in the 2007 election. I welcome this opportunity to have a mid-term vote of confidence, as it will enable the House to reiterate its confidence that we will be able to steer the ship of State through the most difficult times experienced in many years. At the last...

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: Every Department has areas where more can and will be done. However, it is wrong to say that we should have spent more while simultaneously saying that we did nothing at all. There are significant contradictions between what the Opposition said at the time and what it is saying now. We must acknowledge that the programme for Government must be reviewed because of the changed economic...

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: I do not claim that any one individual is getting a significant amount of money, but spending so much is a considerable commitment on the part of the State. In recent weeks, we heard of many negatives, but no notice was given to the fact that 55,000 carers got a €1,700 respite grant.

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: That we could continue to recognise their valuable role in society was important, but it was given no notice. Little attention was also given to recent announcements on the increased allocation to counselling grants, supports for people experiencing marriage difficulties and grants to family support agencies. It may be the case that we are not giving enough attention to good news. The past...

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: However, it is a significant protocol. The announcement was made at the IBF's buildings. We discuss the need to support people facing financial crises owing to personal indebtedness, but the protocol is one way of doing so. Another positive support related to a placement service to provide work experience to young graduates and people who had never been able to find work. The announcement...

Confidence in Government: Motion (resumed) (10 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: Four hundred thousand.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare service of the Health Service Executive. The person concerned was in receipt of supplementary welfare allowance from January 2008 to the end of April 2009. Payment was made in respect of the person concerned, her spouse and four dependent children. The payment of supplementary...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 454 and 463 together. Rent supplement is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive as part of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme. The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation, whose means are...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The average time to award a claim for carer's allowance is currently just under 9 weeks. Entitlement to carer's allowance is based on satisfying medical, means and residency conditions. In determining entitlement to the allowance there are, in certain cases, unavoidable time lags involved in making the necessary investigations and enquiries to enable accurate decisions to be made. Delays...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 456 and 477 together. There are currently over 88,000 people in receipt of rent supplement, an increase of 48% since the end of December 2007. The recent Supplementary Budget provided for an increase in the weekly minimum contribution payable towards rent from €18 to €24 a week, with effect from 1 June 2009. It also provided that payments currently being...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The free travel scheme and household benefits package are additional benefits available to customers who satisfy the required qualifying criteria. The household benefits package comprises the electricity or gas allowance, telephone allowance and free lifetime television licence. Details of the number of people benefiting from each allowance and the cost of each allowance for the last five...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The person concerned claimed jobseeker's benefit on 26 January 2009. The Department's records show that he has insufficient qualifying contributions paid and/or credited in the governing contribution year (2007). Following an investigation into the insurability of his employment between 1 March 2007 and 11 October 2007 it was decided that his employment in this period was insurable at PRSI...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (9 Jun 2009)

Mary Hanafin: The position remains as advised in Parliamentary Questions 320 and 168 which I answered for the Deputy on the 12 and 28 May 2009 respectively. The Executive has advised that rent supplement was refused as total household income was deemed to be sufficient to meet the accommodation costs of the person concerned. He appealed against this decision to an Appeals Officer of the Executive but...