Results 5,821-5,840 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The School Meals Programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to some 1,600 schools and organisations benefitting 260,000 children. The objective of the programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: State pension (non-contributory) is a means-tested payment for people aged 66 and over who have a right of residence and habitually reside in the State and who do not qualify for a state pension contributory, or only qualify for a reduced-rate contributory pension based on their social insurance record. An application for state pension (non-contributory) was received from the person...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The social insurance system has been developed on an incremental basis since the current unified system was introduced in 1953. While the system is now very comprehensive, various groups of workers, including self-employed workers, were brought into cover and made liable to make contributions at differing periods over the years. Ministers of Religion who were in employment (as a Minister...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The person concerned reached pension age on 12 November 2022. According to the records of my Department, the person concerned has a total of 772 qualifying paid and credited social insurance contributions from their date of entry into employment in 1975, to the end of 2022. This equates to a yearly average of 16 contributions, giving entitlement to 65% of the maximum rate state pension...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (23 May 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 invalidity pension appeal by the person concerned was registered in that...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: One of the persons concerned is in receipt of the State Pension (contributory) from my Department. The other named person is not in receipt of a social welfare payment. The Spring Cost of Living Bonus is one of the range of measures put in place by the Government. It is one lump sum payment of €200 for each eligible person in receipt of a primary payment in their own right. The...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Construction Industry (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Achieving the goals set out in the Housing for All Strategy will require the recruitment of more than 50,000 new construction workers to meet the Government's current housing and retrofitting targets. In response to this need, the Future Building Initiative was established to work directly with jobseekers, supporting them through training and skills development, and matching them with...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Carer's Allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that, as a result, they require that level of care. If a person is in receipt of another social welfare payment in their own right (other than unemployment payments or...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Welfare Services (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: CWOs are physically on site daily in over 50 Intreo Centres across the country where they are available to be seen without an appointment, during business hours, Monday to Friday including at the Clonmel and Thurles Intreo Centres. In addition to meeting citizens in Intreo Centres, Branch Offices and DSP offices, CWOs can facilitate an appointment within a short time of a person requiring...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Partial Capacity Benefit (PCB) is a social welfare scheme which allows a person to return to work or self-employment (if they have reduced capacity to work) and continue to receive a payment from my Department. An applicant must have been in receipt of Illness Benefit (for a minimum of 6 months) or Invalidity Pension prior to being awarded PCB and returning to work. To qualify for PCB, an...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: When the person concerned made an application for Illness Benefit, they stated on their application form that their most recent place of employment was in Sweden. In accordance with Article 11 of Regulation (EC) 883/2004, as amended, which stipulates that a person can only be socially insurable in one Member State, the application fell to be considered by the relevant authorities in Sweden....

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Yearly Average method of calculating State Pension Contributory payment rates has been used since the introduction of the contributory Old Age Pension (now State Pension contributory) in 1961. The date of entry is the date of first contribution irrespective of the class of social insurance. The interim Total Contributions Approach was introduced in January 2018. It simply adds paid...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Wildlife Conservation (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Under the Government’s Climate Action policies, my Department is committed to responding to climate change and improving our environment for present and future generations. A DSP Green Committee comprising staff and managers has been established, which promotes a greener, more ecological culture within my Department, coordinates green initiatives, champions sustainable practices,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Child Benefit is a monthly payment to the parents or guardians of children under 16 years of age. Child Benefit can also be claimed for children aged 16 and 17, if they are in full-time education or full-time training or have a disability and cannot support themselves. Child Benefit scheme stopped the provision of freepost envelopes to customers in 2017. In cases where a customer writes...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Matters related to foster caring are the responsibility of my colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and Tusla. More widely, this Government acknowledges the important role that carers play and is fully committed to supporting them in that role. Accordingly, the current State Pension (Contributory) system provides for a range of measures including...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The €200 Spring lump sum payment was paid to 1.3 million recipients in receipt of long-term social welfare payments. This lump sum was paid in late April and cost approximately €261 million. The payment was made to primary recipients of a qualifying payment only. This support was paid to a cohort defined on a similar basis to the Christmas Bonus, including to those on...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (23 May 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 a carer's allowance appeal by the person concerned was registered in that...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (23 May 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. I confirm that my Department received an application for DA from the person concerned on 15...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (23 May 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, a means test and Habitual Residency conditions. A DA review was carried out the person concerned in April 2023. Following this review, an...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (23 May 2023)

Heather Humphreys: My Department provides a comprehensive package of carers’ income supports including Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the Carer’s Support Grant. Combined spending on all these payments in 2023 is estimated to be almost €1.6 billion. The Carer’s Allowance is the main scheme by which the Department provides income...