Results 4,801-4,820 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (27 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: As announced in the Budget, the Government has decided that from now on child benefit will no longer be paid in respect of those who are 18 years old. At that stage, they are effectively treated as adults in most respects. This change will be phased in gradually. A half payment will be made in respect of existing and future qualifying children from January 2009 and from January 2010 the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (27 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Social insurance is intended both to enable people to insure themselves against adverse life events such as illness or unemployment and to provide for their state pensions and other benefits, through contributions to the national Social Insurance Fund. Social insurance benefits are not means-tested. Instead, entitlement depends on having paid the required number of PRSI contributions relevant...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (27 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Illness Benefit was intended to provide income replacement for insured persons during short spells of incapacity or illness, while other payments are available to people who can't work long-term because of a disability or a medical condition. However, there is currently no limit on the amount of time for which Illness Benefit can be paid to people who have more than 260 social insurance...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (27 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: At present some people who were previously working part-time can receive a higher rate of payment from jobseekers benefit than what they were actually earning whilst at work. This is because the graduated rating structure which applies in such cases has not been revised since 2003. This situation is inappropriate and a disincentive to employment and so, from next January, the situation will...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (27 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on behalf of the Department by community welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE), provides for the payment of rent supplement to eligible people whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs. The Health Service Executive has advised that the person concerned has been refused rent supplement on...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (26 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Rent supplement is administered on behalf of the Department by the Health Service Executive (HSE), as part of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme (SWA). 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 insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (26 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The back to education allowance is a second chance education opportunities scheme designed to encourage and facilitate people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the work force. The scheme is designed to enable people in receipt of social welfare payments to pursue an approved full-time education...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (26 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The Department is committed to providing a quality customer service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are issued as expeditiously as possible having regard to the eligibility conditions which apply. Every effort is being made to process claims in local offices as quickly as possible. This includes the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, which is administered by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE), is designed to provide immediate and flexible assistance for those in need who do not qualify for payment under other State schemes. Under the legislation governing the scheme, the HSE may make a single payment to meet an exceptional need to people...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Permanent and pensionable employees in the public service — other than those who were recruited after 6 April, 1995, registered doctors and dentists employed in the Civil Service, Gardaí, commissioned army officers and members of the Army Nursing Service — are liable to pay social insurance contributions at the modified PRSI Class D rate during their working lives. While these...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: All applicants regardless of nationality, from 1 May 2004, are required to be habitually resident in the State in order to qualify for supplementary welfare allowance. The Executive has advised that the person concerned was refused supplementary welfare allowance on the grounds that he is regarded as not being habitually resident in the State. If the person is not satisfied with the decision...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes mortgage interest supplement, is administered on behalf of the department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Mortgage interest supplement provides short-term income support to eligible people who are unable to meet their mortgage interest repayments in respect of a house which is their sole place of...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The household benefits package includes the electricity and gas allowance, telephone allowance and free television licence schemes. People aged 70 or over and people in receipt of carer's allowance qualify for the package regardless of household composition. In order to qualify for household benefits people aged under 70 years of age must be in receipt of a qualifying payment or satisfy a...

Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The Department assumed sole responsibility for the registration of customers and subsequent allocation of PPS Numbers in June 2000. Prior to this, the issue of PPS Numbers was a shared function between the Department and the Revenue Commissioners. The annual total of PPS Numbers issued by the Department (i.e. from 19 June 2000) is as follows: 2000 (from 19-Jun) 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005...

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: In Budget, 2009 the Government announced proposals in relation to the future of two of the agencies under the aegis of the Department — the Combat Poverty Agency and the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS). The Combat Poverty Agency is to be integrated with the Office for Social Inclusion within the Department of Social and Family Affairs. The decision on integration was informed by...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Disablement benefit, payable under the Occupational Injuries Scheme, is a compensation payment for loss of faculty arising out of or in the course of insurable employment. The legislation governing the Occupational Injuries Scheme provides entitlement to benefit for persons suffering from loss of faculty arising out of an accident at work or from certain prescribed diseases which are listed...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The national fuel allowance scheme assists householders on long-term social welfare or health service executive (HSE) payments with meeting the cost of their heating needs during the winter season. The allowance represents a contribution towards a person's normal heating expenses. It is not intended to meet those costs in full. Fuel allowance is paid to eligible people from the date of...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, an exceptional needs payment (ENP) may be made to help meet an essential, once-off cost which the applicant is unable to meet out of his/her own resources. There is no automatic entitlement to this payment. Each application is...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: An application for State Pension (Non-contributory) was received from the person concerned on 9th October 2008 and was referred to the local Social Welfare Inspector for investigation. On receipt of the inspector's report a decision will be made on her claim and she will be notified of the outcome.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (25 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The case referred to by the Deputy was settled without prejudice for a sum significantly less than the plaintiff sought and without any admission of liability on the part of the State. In so far as this Department is concerned, the plaintiffs sought a declaration as to the Constitutionality of the legislative measures introduced by this Department in 1999 governing entitlement to the...