Results 8,721-8,740 of 12,033 for speaker:Regina Doherty

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Poverty Data (13 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The most recent EUROSTAT data shows that 7.5% of the population in Ireland was severely materially deprived in 2015, compared to the EU28 average rate of 8.1% (see Table 1). This is an improvement on 2014 where the rates were 8.4% and 8.9% respectively. However, the full impact of the recovery is not reflected in these figures, which relate to 2015. Macro-economic and labour market...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Poverty Data (13 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The latest CSO Survey on Income and Living Conditions (SILC) results for 2015 show that the consistent poverty rate, for people in households headed by a person whose principal economic status was “unable to work due to illness or a disability”, was 22.4% in 2015. The at-risk-of-poverty rate was 34.8% with the basic deprivation rate at 53.2%. Neither Eurostat nor the OECD...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Child Benefit Data (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children in respect of all qualified children up to the age of 16 years. The payment continues to be paid in respect of children up to their 18th birthday who are in full-time education, or who have a disability. Child Benefit is currently paid to 627,318 families in respect of some 1.2 million children, with an estimated expenditure...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: School Meals Programme (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food to schools and organisations at a total cost of some €47.5 million in 2017. This Department does not use the Pobal HP Deprivation Index to determine eligibility for the school meals scheme. As I have already advised the Deputy, in recent years priority for new applications for funding had been given to schools...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Direct Provision System (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The direct provision allowance (DPA) is a non-statutory payment paid by my Department on behalf of the Department of Justice and Equality to protection applicants living in the Direct Provision system. The weekly rate of DPA for children and adults is €21.60. There are currently some 3,430 adults and 1,420 children residing in the system of direct provision in respect of whom the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The person in question has participated on CE since 2011 and reached his six year lifetime limit in November 2017. He was then referred to JobPath for activation support and he is currently engaging with his JobPath provider who will support and assist him to look for a full time sustainable job. Participants with JobPath, who are all long-term unemployed jobseekers, receive intensive...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Maternity Benefit Applications (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, decided to disallow the appeal of the person concerned by way of a summary decision on 15 May 2017. Under Social Welfare legislation, the decision of the Appeals Officer is final and conclusive and may only be reviewed by the Appeals Officer in the light of new...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Supervisors (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: Community Employment (CE) scheme supervisors are employees of private companies in the community and voluntary sector. The State is not responsible for funding pension arrangements for such employees even where the companies in question are reliant on State funding. It is open to individuals to make provision for a pension by way of PRSA which all employers are obliged to facilitate....

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 498 and 499 together. The changes made to State Pension (contributory) rate bands in Budget 2012, affected those pensioners who had a yearly average of less than 39 social insurance contributions over the course of their working life. The current rate bands were introduced from September 2012, replacing previous rates introduced in 2000. The rate...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: My Department provides a range of activation supports catering for long-term unemployed jobseekers and those most distant from the labour market. These supports include employment programmes such as Community Employment (CE). The purpose of CE is to help a person re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to work routine. Participation on CE...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I confirm that my Department received an application for carer’s allowance from the person concerned on the 1 September 2017. 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. The application...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I confirm that my Department received a carer’s allowance (CA) application on the 23 August 2017 from the person concerned in respect of two care recipients. It is a condition for receipt of a CA that the level of care and attention being provided by the carer must be full-time. The evidence submitted in support of this application was examined and the deciding officer decided that...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Benefit Eligibility (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The spouse of the person for whom details have been supplied has been in receipt of carer's benefit since July 2016. On the basis of current legislative provisions that provide for a maximum payment period of 104 weeks, the payment is due to end in July 2018. Carer’s benefit is an income support payment for people who have made social insurance contributions and who have recently...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I was pleased to announce on Budget Day that an 85% Christmas bonus would be paid this year to over 1.2 million long-term social welfare recipients, such as pensioners, people with disabilities, carers, lone parents and long-term jobseekers at a cost of €219 million. All recipients of the following schemes were eligible to receive the Bonus, which was paid as an 85% increase to the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals Status (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 19 October 2017. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant Departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When these papers have been received from the Department, the case in question will be...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance Applications (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I confirm that my Department received an application for carer’s allowance from the person concerned on 29 September 2017. 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. The application is...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 507 and 508 together. I was pleased to announce on Budget Day that an 85% Christmas bonus was to be paid this year to over 1.2 million long-term social welfare recipients, such as pensioners, people with disabilities, carers, lone parents and long-term jobseekers at a cost of €219 million. The Christmas bonus was introduced in 1980 for certain...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The Government is committed to encouraging self-employment and entrepreneurship. This includes enhancing the position of the self-employed through a supportive tax regime and, very importantly, improving the level of PRSI based benefits available to self-employed people. Self-employed people who earn €5,000 or more in a contribution year, are liable for PRSI at the class S rate of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments Administration (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: I propose to take Questions Nos. 512 and 517 together. I was pleased to announce on Budget Day that an 85% Christmas Bonus was to be paid this year to over 1.2 million long-term social welfare recipients, such as pensioners, people with disabilities, carers, lone parents and long-term jobseekers at a cost of €219 million, in recognition of their long-term financial dependence on...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizen Information Services (12 Dec 2017)

Regina Doherty: The Citizens Information Board (CIB), which has statutory responsibility for the Citizens Information Services (CIS) and the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS), decided in February 2017 to restructure the governance arrangements of these services to an 8 region model. The Board’s decision will change the structure from 93 individual local CIS and MABS company boards to sixteen...