Results 8,121-8,140 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Offices (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: The Department currently has 58 Social Welfare Branch Offices at various locations throughout the country. Each Branch Office is operated and managed, under a contract for services, by a Branch Manager who is required to act as an agent for the Department in the area served by the office. Branch Office managers operate on a contract for service and are independent contractors. The Contract...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Currently there is a provision which allows Community Employment (CE) participants aged 62 or over to apply to extend their participation on CE beyond the standard participation time limits, providing the eligibility conditions of CE are met. Participants aged 62 or over are allowed to participate on a continuous basis up to the State Pension age, subject to satisfactory performance on the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pensions Reform (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Pensions reform is a Government priority and I can confirm an intention to publish and commence the implementation of a pensions reform plan in the coming weeks. This reform plan will detail measures to reform both our State and supplementary pension systems. Perhaps the two most fundamental reform measures contained within this plan will relate to the introduction of the ‘Total...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Labour Court (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 93, 552 and 553 together. The Labour Court determination in question involves a case where the Court, in exercising its independent and quasi-judicial functions, found against an employer in the horse racing industry in relation to breaches of the working time legislation. The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 (the 1997 Act) sets out statutory...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Unemployment Levels (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: The first publication of the Labour Force Survey which replaces the Quarterly National Household Survey (QHNS) was released on 16, January 2018 and is the official measure of unemployment. The most recent data shows that unemployment has fallen from a peak of 15% in 2012 to 6.7% by Q.3 2017. Within the South East region, which includes Wexford, unemployment has fallen from a peak of 19.0%...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Paternity Leave Data (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Paternity benefit was introduced from 1stSeptember 2016 and provides a payment in respect of two weeks paternity leave to be taken within 26 weeks of the birth of the baby. In the period from the commencement of the scheme up to the end of 2017 a total of 31,071 people have availed of this leave and have been awarded and paid paternity benefit. The table below shows a breakdown by county of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Employment Rights (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: The two main social welfare schemes in my Department for individuals who are unemployed or unable to find full-time work are jobseeker’s benefit and jobseekers allowance. The 2018 Estimates for my Department provide for expenditure this year on the jobseeker’s schemes of €2.17 billion. An Taoiseach, in his previous role as Minister for Social Protection, gave a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Youth Employment Initiative (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: I intend to introduce the new Youth Employment Support Scheme (YESS) in June of this year. The scheme will be targeted at young people aged 18 to 24 who are long-term unemployed or who face barriers to employment. It aims to provide them with the opportunity to learn basic work and social skills in a supportive environment while on a work placement. It will be open to people getting a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizen Information Services (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: The aim of the decision by the Board of the Citizens information Board (CIB) to restructure local Citizens Information Services (CIS) and Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) company boards is to improve the governance arrangements with its downstream service delivery partners. It must be remembered that citizen centric CIS and MABS services are 100% funded by the Exchequer. It is...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Data Protection (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 100 and 101 together. I am assuming that the Deputy is referring to security of the data relating to the Public Services Card. The purpose of the Public Services Card (PSC) is to enable individuals to gain access to public services more efficiently and with a minimum of duplication of effort, while at the same time preserving their privacy to the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Redundancy Payments (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: It is the employer’s responsibility to pay statutory redundancy and other wage related entitlements to all eligible employees. An eligible employee is entitled to two weeks statutory redundancy payment for every year of service, plus a bonus week. Compensation is based on the worker’s length of reckonable service and reckonable weekly remuneration, subject to a ceiling of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Rural Social Scheme (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Deputies on all sides of the House are fully aware of the positive benefits derived from schemes like the Rural Social Scheme (RSS). In recognition of the crucial work undertaken in rural communities under the scheme, and as part of the social welfare budget package for 2018, I announced an increase in the weekly rate of payment for participants from March together with an additional 250...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Funding towards school meals is being provided in over 1,550 schools and other organisations, supporting up to 247,000 children at a cost of some €54 million in 2018, representing an increase of €6.5 million over the previous year. The Department was a member of the Inter-Departmental Advisory Group for the Review of the DEIS Programme undertaken by the Department of Education...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: One-Parent Family Payment Eligibility (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: The provision of fostering services is a matter for TUSLA (the Child and Family Agency). This includes any supports, including financial, that are required by either the foster parents or the foster children that specifically relate to fostering. Under the current social welfare legislation in order to qualify for payment of OFP, an applicant must be a qualified parent of at least one...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Data (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: I regret that the county breakdown requested by the Deputy is not readily available in my Department. However, I include for her information the total number of recipients benefiting from an increased payment for a qualified adult that were in payment at the end of January. Number of Qualified Adult Allowances in payment at the end of January 2018 Scheme Qualified Adults State Pension...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits Data (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Our records indicate that the number of adult dependants on the relevant activation schemes i.e. Back To Education Allowance, Back to Work Enterprise Allowance, Short Term Enterprise Allowance, Tús, Gateway and Community Employment in January 2018 are set out in Table 1 as follows. Table 1 - No. of Adult Dependants paid on Activation Schemes at Jan 2018 County Back to Education...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Working Family Payment Payments (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: Working Family Payment (formerly known as Family Income Supplement) is a weekly tax free payment which provides additional income support to employees on low earnings with children. An application for Working Family Payment (WFP) was received from the person concerned on 25 November 2017. The person concerned has now been awarded WFP with effect from 5 October 2017 to 3 October 2018. The...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card Data (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: As of 15 February 2018, over 3.126 million PSCs have been issued. This includes almost 1.01 million Free Travel PSCs. The number of PSCs currently issued to under 18 year olds is 27,315. In this context, it should be noted that a new PSC is issued to a person once he or she turns 18 years of age. I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Public Services Card (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: SAFE 2 identity verification is currently required for: - Access to Social Welfare Services (including Child Benefit and Treatment Benefits); - First time adult passport applicants in the state; - Replacement of lost, stolen or damaged passports issued prior to January 2005, where the person is resident in the State; - Citizenship applications; - Driver Theory Test Applicants; and - Access to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Widow's Pension Appeals (20 Feb 2018)

Regina Doherty: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was referred on 19thFebruary 2018 to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing. The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection...