Results 7,901-7,920 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Child Benefit Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: Child Benefit is a universal monthly payment made to families with children in respect of all qualified children up to the age of 16 years (and up to their 18th birthday if the child is in full-time education, or has a disability). Currently, Child Benefit is paid to 628,788 families in respect of some 1.2 million children, with an estimated expenditure of over €2 billion in 2018....

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: The purpose of SAFE registration is to verify a person’s identity to a substantial level of assurance. Once identity is verified, a Public Services Card can be issued. My Department makes it clear to our customers that they need to complete a SAFE registration to access, or continue to access, payments and entitlements. This is not an unreasonable condition given the value of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 565 and 584 together. PRSI contributions can be credited to people in a number of contexts, for example when in receipt of a Jobseekers or Illness benefit payments. Where applicable, these may be used towards PRSI-based social protection payments, including the State pension contributory. A policy to introduce the Total Contributions Approach (TCA)...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Working Family Payment Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: The Working Family Payment (WFP) is an in-work support that provides an income top-up for employees on low earnings. WFP is designed to prevent in-work poverty for low paid workers with child dependants and to offer a financial incentive to take-up employment. There are currently almost 57,700 families with more than 129,000 children in receipt of the WFP. The estimated spend on WFP this...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) Applications (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: According to the records of my Department, the person concerned has a total of 679 reckonable contributions/credits recorded for the period from October 1963 to end-2012 inclusive. This is equivalent to a yearly average of 14, which would entitle them to a reduced state pension (contributory). There is a gap in the person’s social insurance record for the tax years 1966/67 to 1967/68...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pensions Reform (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: A policy to introduce the Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to pensions calculation was adopted by Government in the National Pensions Framework in 2010, as was the decision to base the entitlements of all new pensioners on this approach from around 2020. The Government announced in January that those affected by the 2012 rate band changes will also have the option of availing of a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: JobPath Data (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: As the Deputy will be aware, JobPath is a service that supports people who are long-term unemployed to obtain and sustain paid employment. The service was launched in 2015 on a ‘rolling basis’ with referral numbers gradually increasing over time. JobPath providers do not apply or recommend the application of a penalty rate of payment. They simply advise the Department if...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: JobPath Data (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: As the Deputy will be aware, JobPath is a service that supports people who are long-term unemployed to obtain and sustain paid employment. The service was launched in 2015 on a ‘rolling basis’ with referral numbers gradually increasing over time. There are two phases to the service. During the first phase, of 12 months duration, a personal advisor (PA) provides practical...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Tús Programme (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 572 and 580 together. Tús is one of a range of supports provided by my Department to cater for long-term unemployed jobseekers and those most distant from the labour market. It provides part-time temporary work in local communities, as a stepping-stone back to employment. However, it is important to note that these placements are not full-time...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: As replied to the Deputy in Question number 91 answered on Tuesday 20thFebruary 2018 I am currently reviewing the rules governing the provision which allows Community Employment (CE) participants aged 62 or over to apply to extend their participation on CE beyond the standard lifetime participation limits. I expect this review to be completed shortly. If a particular participant wants to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Question Heading for question(s) 574 (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: The following table provides the details which have been requested by the Deputy for the period to the end of February 2018. It only includes the appeal processing times for schemes paid on a weekly basis. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Brexit Issues (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: My UK counterpart, Secretary of State Esther McVey, was recently appointed to her post in the Department for Work and Pensions. I have arranged to meet with her in London on Monday 23rdApril. A key area of concern is the impact of Brexit on the current reciprocal arrangements for social insurance and social assistance schemes and child benefit between Ireland and the UK, including Northern...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Consumer Protection (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: This matter is not proper to the Minister of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 578 and 579 together. Rent supplement plays a vital role in housing families and individuals, with the scheme supporting some 32,450 recipients for which the Government has provided €180 million for 2018. The number of rent supplement recipients as at end of December 2017 and February, 2018 is provided in the following tabular statement. Recipient...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pensions Reform (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 581 and 582 together. A policy to introduce the Total Contributions Approach (TCA) to pensions calculation was adopted by Government in the National Pensions Framework in 2010, as was the decision to base the entitlements of all new pensioners on this approach from around 2020. Calculation of pension under the Yearly Average Approach and under the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: The person concerned has been in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance since August 2011. Payment of Jobseekers Allowance is dependent on the claimant satisfying a means test and also being available for and genuinely seeking work. All claimants are also subject to periodic reviews of entitlement. On the 19thof December 2017, a letter issued from my Department to the person concerned advising her...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Invalidity Pension Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: Voluntary Contributions are designed to facilitate employees or self-employed people who are no longer subject to compulsory PRSI, to pay contributions directly to the Department on a voluntary basis, in order to protect their future state pension (contributory), widow’s, widower’s or surviving civil partner’s contributory (pension) and guardian’s contributory...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: My department received an application for CA from the person concerned on the 13 February 2018. Carer's allowance 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 person who has such a disability that they require that level of care. However, as the person concerned has left her...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card Provision (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: The Department has a variety of arrangements in place to ensure that citizens can SAFE register and obtain a Public Services Card (PSC), irrespective of their location or place of residence. The majority of SAFE registrations are through attendance in person at the local INTREO Centre or Social Welfare Branch Office. Customers may be invited to attend, or can make contact themselves to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Eligibility (8 Mar 2018)

Regina Doherty: When a person wishes to claim treatment benefit as a dependant spouse, based on their spouse’s/partner’s PRSI record, they are required to complete an eligibility check form, available from the service provider they intend to use or directly from the Department. In order to determine eligibility the Department has to confirm that the insured spouse/partner satisfies the PRSI...