Results 4,441-4,460 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Eligibility (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment while Carer's benefit (CARB) is a social insurance payment made to full-time employees who leave the workforce. Both payments may be payable to persons who are providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that they require that level of care, provided that they satisfy the qualifying...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Supervisors (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: I am acutely aware of the valuable and dedicated service that Community Employment, CE, sponsor organisations provide in running CE Schemes all over the country. CE supervisors, as employees of these organisations, are an integral part of that good work. However, it is important to emphasise the fact that CE scheme supervisors are employees of private companies in the community and voluntary...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: The increase for living on a specified island (Island Increase) is an increase to certain weekly payments from this Department to people who are ordinarily resident on an island off the coast of Ireland. The objective of the scheme is to compensate for the additional costs of living on these specified islands when compared to people resident on the mainland. The full year cost of raising...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card Authentication (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 657, 658 and 663 together. Completion of registration to SAFE Level 2 - which is the process used by my Department to establish and verify a person’s identity to a substantial level of assurance - is the minimum requirement for a Public Services Card (PSC) to issue. The Department uses facial image matching software to strengthen the SAFE...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Support Grant (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Carer’s Support Grant is an annual payment made by my Department to carers. It is paid automatically to carers who are in receipt of Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit or Domiciliary Care Allowance. The estimated full year cost of increasing the Carer's Support Grant from €1,700 to €2,000 is €35.2 million.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card Provision (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Public Services Card (PSC) enables individuals to gain access to public services more efficiently and with a minimum of duplication of effort, while at the same time preserving their privacy to the maximum extent possible. A PSC is currently issued following a registration process which involves the verification of the person's identity, the capture of an individual’s photograph...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Programmes (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: My department is currently finalising the new Social Inclusion Strategy for the period 2019 – 2025. It will have a ‘whole of government’ approach which recognises the shared responsibility across Government to achieve improved outcomes for the most vulnerable and marginalised in our society. The most up to date poverty data from the 2017 Survey on Income and Living...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: One-Parent Family Payment Eligibility (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: My Department spent over €500 million on the one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme in 2018. The scheme currently supports over 39,000 recipients and almost 73,000 children. The OFP scheme has played an important role in providing income support to lone parents since its introduction in 1997. Research shows that being at work reduces the at-risk-of-poverty rate for lone...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Jobseeker's Transitional Payment (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: The cost of increasing the age limit for a qualified child for the jobseeker's transitional payment (JST) to when the youngest child turns 18 years of age is not easily estimated. There are significant barriers to undertaking such an exercise. For example, customers may no longer be within the welfare system, while others could seek to move from alternative payments such as Jobseekers...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Working Family Payment Eligibility (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Working Family Payment (WFP) is an in-work support which provides an income top-up for employees on low earnings with children. WFP is designed to prevent in-work poverty for low paid workers with child dependants and to offer a financial incentive to take-up employment. Estimated expenditure on WFP in 2018 is approximately €430 million and it is currently paid to almost 54,000...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: One-Parent Family Payment (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: I note the report referred to by the Deputy. The policy goal of the changes to the One-Parent Family Payment (OFP) scheme were to tackle long-term social welfare dependency - and its associated poverty risks - through a tapering of income supports and a more active engagement process offering enhanced educational, training and employment supports for lone parents via the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Working Family Payment Data (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: Working Family Payment (WFP) is a weekly in-work payment which provides additional financial support to employees on low earnings with children. WFP is designed to prevent in-work poverty for low paid workers with child dependents and to offer a financial incentive to take up employment. The number of persons in receipt of WFP for years 2008 to 2018 were as follows: Year WFP Recipients...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: One-Parent Family Payment (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: While social transfers play a crucial role in alleviating poverty, and Ireland is among the best performing EU States for reducing poverty through social transfers, tackling poverty in one parent families is not just about income supports and welfare. Rather it is also about supporting parents to make the transition into employment and assisting families through the provision of quality...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Proposed Legislation (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: I am aware of the Social Welfare Commission Bill 2018, sponsored by the Deputy, which seeks to, among other things, establish a Commission to monitor and make recommendations on social welfare rates at least once per year. The Deputy will be aware that the issue of benchmarking and indexation of social welfare rates is not new. For example, previous studies were conducted by the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Sector Staff Grades (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: I understand that the question of the recruitment, grading and status of people appointed to the Civil Service is a matter for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Commission for Public Service Appointments. I further understand that it is not possible for a person appointed from an open competition to rely on prior status in another employment for the purpose of grading in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Small and Medium Enterprises Supports (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: Legislation governing the national minimum wage is set down in the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 and the National Minimum Wage (Low Pay Commission) Act 2015. These Acts provide for the setting of a national minimum wage (NMW) and also provide that in specified circumstances, such as younger workers and trainees, a reduced, sub-minimum rate may be applied. In September 2015, the then...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizens Information Board (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: The Citizens Information Board (CIB) is the statutory body responsible for supporting the provision of information, advice (including money and budgeting advice) and advocacy on a wide range of public and social services. It provides some services directly to the public and directly funds and supports an extensive range of services through its delivery partners including the Citizens...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Insurance (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: Low rate voluntary contributors (those formerly insured at Classes B, C and D) currently pay a 2.6% PRSI contribution rate (subject to a minimum annual payment of €250) to maintain their entitlement to widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's (contributory) pension and guardian's payment. There were 17 low rate contributors in 2017 and it is estimated that increasing their...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Tús Programme (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: It is recognised by Government that Tús is a positive initiative that enables the long-term unemployed to make a contribution to their communities whilst up-skilling themselves for prospective future employment. Tús provides work placements for a twelve month period for those who are on the Live Register for a year or more. This initiative helps break the cycle of long-term...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Poverty Data (12 Mar 2019)

Regina Doherty: I note the report referred to by the Deputy. The policy goal of the changes to the OFP scheme were to tackle long-term social welfare dependency - and its associated poverty risks - through a tapering of income supports and a more active engagement process offering enhanced educational, training and employment supports for lone parents via the Department’s Intreo service. A recent...