Results 5,101-5,120 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Deserted Wife's Benefit is a payment made to a woman deserted by her husband. Entitlement to payment is based on Social Insurance contributions paid by the wife or her husband. Deserted Wife's Benefit scheme was discontinued for new applications with effect from January 1997 when One Parent Family Payment was introduced. However, people who were in receipt of this scheme at that stage...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Pre-Retirement Allowance is a means tested payment for people aged 55 and over who opt to retire from the labour force. People transferred to this scheme from Jobseeker's Allowance (formerly Unemployment Assistance). The Pre-Retirement allowance scheme was discontinued for new applicants with effect from July 2007. However, people who were in receipt of the payment at that stage continued to...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The Social Assistance and other allowance subhead relates to the means tested payment for deserted wives and prisoners' wives schemes. These schemes were discontinued for new claimants with effect from January 1997, when One Parent Family Payment was introduced. However, people who were in receipt of these schemes at that stage continued to receive their payment, and will continue to receive...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Subhead T2 provides for the Exchequer's contribution to projects under the social inclusion and social protection strand of the EU Community Action Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity (PROGRESS) 2007 to 2013, which involve Irish partners (both statutory and non-statutory). EU funding for the projects amounts to approximately 80% of project costs, with the remaining 20% to be...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The projected decline of €2.45 million (8%) in the grant to the Citizen's Information Board in the 2009 Estimate over the 2008 Estimate is due to measures taken by the Board to control expenditure next year. These measures include: A 3% reduction in payroll costs over 2008, through the management of staff vacancies. A 50% reduction in expenditure on consultancy, advertising and promotional...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. Applications for the allowance may be made between the beginning of June and the end of September each year. The 2009 rates are €200 for children aged 2 to 11 years old and €305 for children aged 12 to 22. In Budget 2009,...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, 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 the...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 362 and 374 together. A number of families and representative groups expressed concerns about the impact of the changes to the DA scheme announced in Budget 2009. Having reflected on these concerns the Government, on my recommendation, agreed that the existing arrangements, whereby DA is paid to 16 and 17 year olds, will continue pending completion of a full...

Written Answers — Live Register: Live Register (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The table shows the monthly Live Register figures for late October 2004 to 2007 and for end of September 2008, for both the Coolock and Kilbarrack Social Welfare Local Offices. The end of October 2008 figure will be published by the Central Statistics Office later this week. Coolock Kilbarrack 29/10/04 2,482 2,475 28/10/05 2,259 2,259 27/10/06 2,226 2,058 26/10/07 2,247 2,054 26/09/08...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: As at 15th October 2008 there were no vacancies at Executive Officer level in my Department's offices in Athlone and Tullamore.

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Child Benefit is payable to children who are ordinarily resident in the state or who reside with a qualified person outside the state, while that person is a member of the defence forces, a civil servant posted abroad, a volunteer development worker or who remain insurable under Irish Social insurance while working abroad. EU Migrant workers may have an entitlement to Child Benefit and other...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 366, 367 and 370 together. There is no delay in processing the majority of Child Benefit applications. Awards on behalf of Irish-born children are processed either automatically or in a partially automated way using the child's birth details when they are registered with the General Registrar's Office. The average processing time for these claims is less...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: At the 1st November 2008, there were 106 permanent posts and 24 temporary posts in the Child Payments area in the Department, comprising Child Benefit and Early Childcare Supplement. 23 permanent posts and 16 temporary posts are deployed on claims in respect of non-resident children, under EU regulations. 83 permanent posts and 8 temporary posts are deployed on claims for children resident in...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Local Offices provide statements of benefit paid to customers in respect of the schemes administered at local level such as jobseeker's benefit and jobseeker's allowance. The Department is in the process of localising the One-Parent Family Payment Scheme to the network of local offices across the country. Where a One-Parent Family Payment claim is held at the local office, that office, of...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The processing time for claims that fall to be examined under EU and Bilateral agreements take longer than that for standard Irish entitlements, reflecting the added complexity that arises in determining entitlements under these agreements, and the necessity to obtain the relevant insurance details from overseas social security institutions. The majority of social insurance records are...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent supplement, is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. 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...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Self-employed persons pay a modified rate of PRSI contribution (Class S). These contributions provide cover for long-term pensions such as state pension and widow's/widower's contributory pension. However they do not provide cover for short-term benefits such as jobseeker's and illness benefits. Where a self-employed person had been in insurable employment and has PRSI contribution at...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (4 Nov 2008)

Mary Hanafin: Carer's allowance is a means tested income support payment for people who are providing full-time care and attention to a person in need of such care. Budget 2007 provided for new arrangements whereby people can receive a maximum payment equivalent to a half-rate carers allowance while receiving another social welfare payment, other than jobseeker's benefit or allowance. Persons in receipt of...

Written Answers — Departmental Programmes: Departmental Programmes (30 Oct 2008)

Mary Hanafin: The school meals programme gives funding towards the provision of food services for disadvantaged school children through two schemes. The first is the long-standing statutory urban school meals scheme, operated by local authorities and part-financed by the Department of Social & Family Affairs. The second is the school meals local projects scheme through which funding is provided directly...

Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (30 Oct 2008)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 176 and 178 together. The rates of payment for the Early Childcare Supplement (ECS) are a matter for the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. The Department of Social and Family Affairs issues the payments on an Agency basis for that Office. I understand that the ECS is currently paid on a quarterly basis at €275 per quarter from the quarter the child...