Results 6,001-6,020 of 8,196 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: On the question of personal progression plans, my amendment does not seek to remove them. When I debated this issue with the Minister in the past I proposed that she set guidelines on personal progression plans. That would have been a useful step in moving towards the wished-for situation described by Senator O'Reilly. However, my amendment specifically states that the fact of a person...
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I note that the Minister is interested in mirroring language. My next set of amendments speaks to the differences between this legislation and current schemes. There are parts where the legislation does not mirror the current language. Is the phrase "submit to" used in the current legislation, or is it "attend for"? I would like to tease out that specific issue. If it is the case that...
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: That is fine.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I have a very specific question to conclude. Is it the case that if somebody attends a meeting to review the options available to him or her and, at the end of that meeting, does not sign a personal progression plan, that person will nonetheless be regarded as having attended that meeting? Is that the Minister's understanding?
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank the Minister for that clarification.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: The Minister has answered my question in that agreeing to one is not necessarily the requirement of having attended a meeting. That is the key point I wanted to communicate. I thank the Minister for giving me that assurance.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: It may be a long process to reach agreement. It may take several meetings.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I suggest that the need to eat, to live, to clothe one’s children and to heat one’s house make people apply for jobseeker’s benefit in many cases.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: It is the nature of the help. I want people to find work. People want to find work but it is about an approach of assistance or an approach of prescription. We will come to that later.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 3:In page 9, to delete lines 19 and 20 and substitute “Activation Services relating to jobseekers’ benefit (self-employed)”.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 4:In page 9, to delete lines 25 to 32.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 5:In page 9, lines 33 and 34, to delete “may require the person to whom it is given to do” and substitute “may make available to the person”.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 6:In page 9, line 42, to delete “or submit to”.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 7:In page 9, after line 43, to insert the following:“(4) The signing of a personal progression plan shall not be considered a requirement in terms of subsection 3(a) or (b).”.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 8:In page 10, to delete lines 27 to 43, to delete page 11, and in page 12, to delete lines 1 to 19. This goes back to the heart of two issues the Minister has raised. The first is the question of mirroring in these new provisions the language we have in existing social welfare legislation insofar as possible and appropriate. The other issue is the question of helping...
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: Unfortunately, they are not consistent and the language is not the same. I did not want to delay the House by reading into the record the language used but, specifically, it is quite different. As I said, the existing legislation with respect to unemployment benefit and other benefits states: "has refused an offer suitable employment", "has without good cause refused or failed to avail...
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I am very happy to engage.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I am happy to withdraw in that context and to engage with the Minister in regard to those issues.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I will withdraw and reserve the right to reintroduce.
- Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2019: Committee Stage (24 Sep 2019)
Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 9:In page 10, line 27, to delete “prescribed”.