Results 6,461-6,480 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Labour Activation Measures (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The labour market in Ireland experienced a strong recovery as the economy emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall unemployment is among the lowest in the history of the State, at 4.2% in the last quarter of 2022. Young jobseekers are typically among the most disproportionately affected by recessions and economic shocks, however, they usually recover rapidly with labour market...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (28 Mar 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. It is a targeted measure that is directly linked to household income and therefore directly supports...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Strategies (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: While the consumer protection strategy referred to by the Deputy is primarily a matter for the Energy Regulator and Suppliers, I made a number of significant changes in Budget 2023 which will assist low-income households with rising energy costs. A number of considerable reforms were made to the Fuel Allowance scheme designed to provide a major expansion of the scheme. From January 2023, a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from late September to April, at an estimated cost of €412 million in 2023. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. Only one allowance is paid per household. The Government is committed to protecting vulnerable households from the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Consultations (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Cost of Disability report found that there is not a single typical cost of disability. Rather, there is a spectrum from low to high additional costs of disability, depending on individual circumstances. The report also identified that additional costs of disability run across a number of areas of expenditure, including housing, equipment, aids and appliances, care and assistance...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Government acknowledges the important role played by family carers, including young carers, and is fully committed to supporting them in that role. The grant in Scotland is a yearly payment available for those who are 16, 17 or 18 year olds and caring on average 16 hours a week. The Carer's Support Grant that my Department offers is already available to the same age-group and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Staff (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: I understand the Deputy may be referring to a discussion on the operation of the Social Welfare Appeals Office that took place in the Committee on Social Protection, Community and Rural Development and the Islands, in November of last year. In the course of the debate the issue of staff turnover was discussed and the Deputy expressed concern about the loss of experienced appeals officers....

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from late September to April, at an estimated cost of €412 million in 2023. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. Only one allowance is paid per household. The Fuel Allowance is paid to social welfare recipients such as pensioners,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Accommodation Recognition Payment is administered by my Department on behalf of the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. It is available to individuals hosting people who are beneficiaries of Temporary Protection having fled the conflict in Ukraine. The rate of payment increased from €400 per calendar month to €800 per calendar month with...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 132 and 142 together. The Government acknowledges the important role that family carers play and is fully committed to supporting carers in that role. This commitment is recognised in both the Programme for Government and the National Carers’ Strategy. The main income supports for carers provided by my department are Carer’s Allowance,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Disability Awareness Support Scheme provides a contribution towards the cost of disability awareness training for private sector employers. Employers can claim 90% of the eligible training costs in the first year and 80% in subsequent years. The training to be delivered must provide clear and accurate information about disability, address questions that employers or employees may have...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, my Department may make additional needs payments to help meet expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to exceptional and urgent needs payments and certain supplements to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from the customer’s own resources and which are...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Programme for Government and the Economic Recovery Plan include commitments to consider a pay-related jobseeker’s benefit scheme. Pathways to Work further commits to using the experience from the Pandemic Unemployment Payment to inform the design of such a scheme that may be developed. The introduction of a pay-related benefit for jobseekers would bring Ireland in line with the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is payable to a parent /guardian in respect of a child aged under 16, who has a severe disability requiring continual or continuous care and attention in the home, substantially in excess of the care and attention normally required by a child of the same age and the child must be likely to require this substantial level of care for at least 12 consecutive...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The State Pension (Contributory) is a PRSI-based pension, financed by contributions made by current workers and their employers, and paid to pensioners, at a rate based upon their PRSI record. A person is required to have a minimum of 520 paid reckonable PRSI contributions in order to qualify for the State Pension (Contributory). As the actuarial value of the State Pension is currently...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an office of the Department of Social Protection which is independent in its decision making functions. When an appeal is assigned to an Appeals Officer for consideration the Appeals Officer makes a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if necessary, holds an oral hearing. Under the governing legislation the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance is a means-tested social assistance scheme, which is also subject to a medical assessment and habitual residency requirement. Where a person makes an application for Disability Allowance, the means assessment includes income from employment or self-employment, income from a social security pension from another country and maintenance payments. If a claimant is married, in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: My Department provides a suite of income supports for those who are unable to work due to illness or disability. Our two main long-term disability payments are Disability Allowance and Invalidity Pension. Disability Allowance is a means-tested social assistance scheme. The medical criterion for Disability Allowance is that the person's disability must be expected to last for at least...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Meetings (28 Mar 2023)

Heather Humphreys: As a part of my visit to London to celebrate St Patrick's day, I held bilateral meetings with my counterparts namely the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and the Minister for Employment. We spoke about the positive collaboration between the Department of Work and Pensions and the Department of Social Protection on social security matters. In particular, we discussed the work being...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (28 Mar 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 508,000 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 who...