Results 9,401-9,420 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The person concerned reached pension age on 03 January 2022. An application for State Pension (contributory) was received on 18 January 2022. Under current eligibility conditions, an individual must have 520 full-rate paid contributions in order to qualify for standard State pension (contributory). 520 full-rate contributions equate to 10 years of full-rate insurable employment. Factors...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Personal Public Service Numbers (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The vast majority of applications for Personal Public Service Numbers (PPSNs) from International Protection applicants are made in the counties of Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow. My Department has a dedicated service for applicants in those counties. This service involves various Non-Governmental Organisations assisting applicants in completing their application and sending those documents to a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The system of social assistance supports provides payments based on an income need. The means test plays a critical role in determining whether or not an income need arises as a consequence of a particular contingency – such as disability, unemployment or caring. This ensures that the recipient has a verifiable income need and that resources are targeted to those who need them most....

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 390 to 392, inclusive, together. The Benefit Payment for 65 Year Olds, provided under the Jobseekers Benefit scheme, was introduced in line with the Programme for Government commitment, to address the position of people who are required to or choose to retire at age 65 before the pension age of 66. The payment is designed to bridge the gap for people...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Working Family Payment (WFP) is a weekly tax-free payment for employees with children. It supports people who are on low pay. To qualify for WFP, a claimant must have at least one child who normally lives with them and who they support financially. The child must be under 18 (or between 18 and 22 if they are in full-time day education). WFP was formerly known as Family Income Supplement. As...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The table below shows the expenditure on Family Income Supplement/Working Family Payment for the years 2016 - 2021 and year to date (end-August) 2022: Year €000 2016 415,437 2017 414,630 2018 410,546 2019 397,204 2020 377,312 2021 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Reports (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: My Department currently has 14 (fourteen) live studies in progress. Details of these are set out in tabular format below: Live studies, reviews and research undertaken or commissioned Expected completion date 1. A survey of employers to ascertain their views of the Department’s employer services. Ongoing on a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The One-Parent Family Payment (OFP) is a payment to support lone parents under 66 who are bringing children up without the support of a partner. The payment is means-tested and it is payable when the youngest child is under 7 years old. At the end of August 2022, there were 42,123 people in receipt of OFP. The average duration of these claims was 56 months. The Jobseeker’s...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Carer’s Allowance is a payment to people on low incomes who are caring full-time for a person who needs support because of age, disability or illness (including mental illness). The person being cared for must require full-time care and attention. There are a number of factors that impinge on the length of time a person continues to receive Carer's Allowance. The continued...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Transport (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: My Department does not own or rent any vehicles. Of the four agencies under the remit of my Department - Pobal, the Western Development Commission, the Charities Regulatory Authority, and Water Safety Ireland - only Water Safety Ireland operates vehicles. Water Safety Ireland currently uses 10 vehicles, none of which are hybrid or electric.  When these vehicles are due to be...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Post Office Network (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Our Rural Future, notes the Government's commitment to a sustainable post office network as a component of the economic and social infrastructure in rural and urban areas.  As set out in Our Rural Future, the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications are the lead delivery body for the action within the policy to work with An Post to identify the scope to channel additional...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Meals-on-Wheels Services (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: My Department's mission is to support vibrant and sustainable communities across this country, and in doing so to deliver on a wide range of strategic interventions, funding programmes and policies to support urban and rural communities.   Funding for meals-on-wheels community groups may be available, subject to meeting eligibility criteria, through various funding strands managed...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Rural Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The CLÁR Programme provides funding under a number of different measures for small-scale infrastructural projects in designated rural areas that have experienced significant levels of depopulation over a defined period.  A review of CLÁR areas nationally was undertaken in 2021 using the 2016 Census of Population data.  The review examined the most recent changes...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Rural Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The CLÁR Programme provides funding for small-scale projects in designated rural areas that have experienced significant levels of de-population over a defined period. Since the programme was relaunched in 2016, it has supported a wide range of measures. This year's programme was launched in February with a total budget of €7 million.  This represents an increase of...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Reports (20 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The information requested by the Deputy is set out in the table below. Current live Study, Review, research project undertaken or commissioned by Department. Expected date by which each study, review and research is scheduled to be completed. Focused Policy Assessment of the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund. Q4 2022 ...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Community Development Projects (15 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: My Department currently provides a number of funding streams that can be used for the improvement and development of community centres throughout the country. Under the 2022 town and village renewal scheme, where there is a clearly identified and defined need in a town or village that cannot be met by an existing premises, I have included a provision for funding for new-build community...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Community Development Projects (15 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: There are many community centres around the country, which is why we opened this scheme to refurbish existing facilities. There is no doubt that some of them need a good bit of work. During the Covid period, they were not able to fundraise and carry out the type of annual work they do. We now have this fund in place and it is very popular. We got more than 1,000 applications, which, when...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Community Development Projects (15 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I still have to announce the successful applications under the CCIF. The applications are being assessed and there is a lot of work in it. We are going to do it in three phases, with the smaller applications first, the results of which I hope to announce in October. That is the plan. They are all being processed and assessed independently and we hope to have the first announcements in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Offshore Islands (15 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: As is the case with the current LEADER programme, the subregional areas for the new programme will correspond with county boundaries. This alignment will help to ensure coherence of LEADER funding with other initiatives and policies delivered on a county basis, thus helping to deliver the best impact and value for money under LEADER. The county structure also allows for the most efficient...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Island Communities (15 Sep 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I fully understand how sometimes people are very isolated but I think there is an opportunity on islands, the same way as there is in rural Ireland, to embrace new technology. There is a really exciting project taking place on Clare Island, where they are looking at e-health and at how they can use new technology to enhance living on the islands. It is not easy. I have been there in the...