Results 5,401-5,420 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: Deputy Enright could be called worse.
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I, too, thank the Deputies for putting down this motion. It is particularly opportune, not only on the day where we heard that September was the coldest month for a number of years, as Deputy Coveney stated, but also as we prepare for the budget. Deputy Enright asked the point of talking to the Minister for Finance.
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: When one is two weeks out from a budget, there is every point in talking to him, particularly when everything that we do on the payments in my Department is directly related to what will happen on 14 October. I share many of the concerns about the impact of rising fuel and energy costs. No doubt they have impacted on the people who are most vulnerable. My priority, as Minister for Social...
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: For pensions and other households, it refers to the fuel. I read it.
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: It refers, on pensioners and other households, to improvements to the fuel allowance and smokeless fuel supplement.
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: Yes, "which help towards their heating, light and cooking costs" and the electricity or the gas allowances. In fact, the amendment is correct. Included in those numbers would be approximately 100,000 pensioners, 43,000 widows, 55,000 one-parent families, 40,000 persons with disabilities and 31,000 long-term unemployed. The total cost is approximately â¬340 million a year. That is an...
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: The number of weeks for which the fuel allowance is paid has been extended to 30, and in January 2007, the number of units covered by the electricity allowance was increased from 1,800 to 2,400. Even more significantly, from 1 August 2008, the value of the electricity allowance per household increased from â¬465 to â¬540 per annum in line with electricity price increases. In order to...
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: The State bore the cost of the increased units. Because we give people units rather than an amount of money, all of those on the household benefit scheme continue to get that but the State quite rightly bore the extra cost for them. While the fuel allowance is intended as a contribution to heating costs for part of the year, the electricity and gas allowances help people with their heating,...
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: Every depositorââ
- Energy Poverty: Motion (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: We spoke on the motion.
- Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: The Government discussion paper, "Proposals for Supporting Lone Parents," put forward proposals to tackle obstacles to employment for lone parents and other low income families. Under the proposals the lone parenthood category of payment would no longer exist. Instead, a new payment would be made to all parents (living alone or with a partner), with young children, on low income. The...
- Written Answers — Family Support Services: Family Support Services (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I am committed to supporting families and value the role that the Family Resource Centres play in communities all over the country. Funding from the Family Support Agency helps with staffing and equipping these centres. By the end of 2007, the number of Family Resource Centres had expanded from an original 10 to 106 nationwide. The funding for the Programme increased from â¬317,000 in 1994...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I understand that the Deputy is referring to the back to education allowance scheme (BTEA) administered by the Department. This scheme is designed to encourage people on certain social welfare payments to improve their skills and qualifications and, therefore, their prospects of returning to the active work force. It enables qualified people who have been getting a social welfare payment to...
- Written Answers — Social Insurance: Social Insurance (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: The Department has no record of this request. If the solicitors' details or any copy of the correspondence is furnished to Client Identity Services, the request will be dealt with promptly.
- Written Answers — Data Protection: Data Protection (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: The laptop belonging to the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG) was reported missing in April 2007. On 1st of August, 2008 some 16 months after the laptop went missing, the Office of theC&AG informed the Department that the missing laptop contained a number of files used in connection with the audit of the Social Insurance Fund for 2004 and 2005. These files contained some...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Benefits: Social Welfare Benefits (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I propose to take questions number 142 and 143 together. 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. These conditions vary between the two jobseeker schemes and...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: Improvements in the rate of the qualified child increase for the widow's and widower's contributory pension scheme and other schemes will be considered in a Budgetary context.
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 145 and 146 together. The cost of increasing the lowest rate of payment from â¬197.80 to â¬225 per week is â¬818 million in a full year. The cost of increasing the increase for a qualified adult (for all lowest rates of payment) from â¬131.30 to â¬157.50 per week is â¬97.5 million in a full year.
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 147 to 149, inclusive, together. Supporting and recognising carers in our society is, and has been, a priority of the Government since 1997. Over that period, weekly payment rates to carers have been greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have been significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes such as...
- Written Answers — Social Welfare Code: Social Welfare Code (1 Oct 2008)
Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 150 to 152, inclusive, together. Supporting and recognising carers in our society is, and has been, a priority of the Government since 1997. Over that period, weekly payment rates to carers have greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes such as carer's...