Results 5,461-5,480 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance (DA) is a weekly allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66.  This disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to a medical assessment, means test and Habitual Residency conditions. My Department received correspondence from the person concerned notifying a change...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Household Benefits Package (HHB) comprises the electricity or gas allowance, and the free television licence. My Department will spend approximately €285 million this year on HHB for over 511,000 customers. People over the age of 70 receive the HHB package, with one package provided per household. The package is also available to people living in the State aged 66-69 years...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Partial Capacity Benefit scheme allows a person who is in receipt of Invalidity Pension or Illness Benefit (the latter for 26 weeks) to enter or return to employment or self-employment and to continue to receive a partial or full payment. This is an employment support scheme and would not be an appropriate scheme for the issue of travel to medical appointments. Under the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: State pension non-contributory is a means-tested payment for people aged 66 and over, legally and habitually residing in the State, who do not qualify for a state pension contributory, or who only qualify for a reduced rate contributory pension based on their social insurance record. The person concerned is in receipt of a state pension non-contributory. Based on their assessed weekly...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Bodies (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Circular 25/2016 states that State Bodies under the aegis of Government Departments must provide and maintain a dedicated email address for queries by Oireachtas members. The statutory bodies operating under the aegis of my Department are the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Authority, the Pensions Council and the Social Welfare Tribunal. Details in relation to the compliance by...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments (ANP) to help meet expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. An ANP is an overarching term used to refer to Exceptional and Urgent Needs Payments, and certain other Supplements available to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from a person’s...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance is a weekly allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66.  This disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to a medical examination, a means test and Habitual Residence conditions. My Department periodically reviews claims to ensure there is continued entitlement to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: My Department provides a range of employment services to support jobseekers in preparing for, securing and sustaining employment. These services are provided directly by my Department’s own staff or through the Intreo Partner and other services provided on behalf of my Department. The Personal Progression Plan (PPP) is a crucial element of each Jobseeker’s engagement with...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: As the Deputy will be aware, referrals to the JobPath service have ceased and the service is now in a run-off phase, with only clients referred up to June 2022 remaining engaged with the service. Following comprehensive procurement processes, new Intreo Partners employment services were introduced to engage with the long-term unemployed and other clients as appropriate. Seetec operates two...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: According to the records of my Department, the person concerned does not have paid reckonable contributions in their own right for a state pension contributory.  The person concerned is the beneficiary of an Increase for Qualified Adult allowance on their spouse’s State Pension (contributory).  This is paid at the maximum weekly rate of €237.80, which equates to 90% of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Working Family Payment (WFP) is a weekly tax-free payment for employees with children which supports people in low paid employment. The 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. Once awarded WFP is payable for 52 weeks. At the end of the 52-week period, a customer must reapply (renew)...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has no funding or grant scheme available that could cover a case such as the one outlined by the Deputy. I note that the Deputy has also submitted this question to a number of Departments to check on other potential funding available to support the initiative. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance (SWA) scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments (ANPs) to help meet expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. An ANP is an overarching term used to refer to Exceptional and Urgent Needs Payments, and certain other Supplements available to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from a person’s...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: As part of the Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025, Government committed to finalising an approach for the benchmarking and indexation of pension payments. Last September, I announced a series of landmark reforms to the State Pension system. The measures are in response to the recommendations from the Commission on Pensions and represent the biggest ever structural reform of the Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Broadband Infrastructure (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Public Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) provide onsite connectivity for community use at publicly accessible premises, such as community centres and sports clubs. They are located in rural and isolated areas including on a number of off-shore islands and support remote working, digital skills training and a range of community initiatives. In the coming months, in consultation with...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: State Bodies (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: There are four agencies under my Department’s remit: the Western Development Commission, POBAL, Irish Water Safety, and the Charities Regulator. In respect of these bodies, they are all independent legal entities responsible for managing their own corporate affairs in compliance with their statutory obligations. The details of the Oireachtas contact point for each of the agencies, who...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Rural Schemes (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 748 and 750 together. Embracing Ireland’s Outdoors, the new National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027 was developed in collaboration with Comhairle na Tuaithe and is a collaborative cross-Government, stakeholder-led strategy. It reflects the views of stakeholders, the public and the whole of Government and it sets the stage to strengthen and...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Community Development Projects (20 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: On 18th May, accompanied by the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Minister Stephen Donnelly and Minister of State Joe O’Brien, I announced details of €50 million in funding for over 880 projects under the Community Recognition Fund. At its core, this Fund recognises the efforts of communities who have gone above and beyond what might be expected during what has been a very...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (15 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance (DA) is a weekly allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66. This disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to a medical assessment, means test and Habitual Residency conditions. The person concerned was a care recipient on Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) until they...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (15 Jun 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 8th...