Results 11,341-11,360 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Medical Appliance benefit can be paid to those PRSI contributors and their dependent spouses with the required number of recorded contributions.  The scheme provides for a grant towards the provision of hearing aids and contact lenses required for medical reasons. The amount paid by the Department in respect of the Medical Appliance scheme in 2021 was €20.003m and to date in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The back to school clothing and footwear allowance scheme provides a once-off payment to eligible families to assist with the costs of clothing and footwear when children start or return to school each autumn.  The scheme operates from June to September each year. The scheme will be open in June 2022.  As in previous years, 80% of payments under this scheme will be paid without...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is an important measure that assists pensioners and other recipients of long term  social protection schemes to address income deficiency, especially during the winter.  The duration of the scheme is designed to coincide with the coldest periods of the year and it is for this reason the scheme runs from October to mid-April.  Any proposal to change this...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33.00 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from October to April, which is supporting up to an estimated 400,000 households in 2022, at an estimated cost of €366 million in 2022.  The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs.  The allowance represents a contribution...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Partial Capacity Benefit allows a person who has been in receipt of Illness Benefit for six months or Invalidity Pension and who may not have full capacity for work, to return to employment and continue to receive a partial or full payment from the Department. The person concerned is currently in receipt of Disability Allowance. Persons in receipt of Disability Allowance are...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: 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 28 January 2022.  Under social welfare legislation the decision of an Appeals Officer is generally final and conclusive and may only be reviewed by an Appeals Officer in the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Carer's allowance (CA) 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 child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care.  I can confirm that the person concerned is in receipt of CA in respect of her care recipient since 31 May...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pension Provisions (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: The Pensions Commission was established in November 2020 to examine the sustainability of the State Pension system and the Social Insurance Fund, in fulfilment of a Programme for Government commitment.  The Commission was an independent body comprised of knowledgeable and experienced academics, pension experts, members of civil society and representatives of workers and employers. ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Working Family Payment (WFP), formerly Family Income Supplement, is a weekly in-work support which provides an income top-up for employees on low earnings with children.  To qualify for Working Family Payment the customer must be working a minimum of 38 hours per fortnight in ongoing insurable employment and have at least 1 qualified child who normally resides with them. The WFP claim of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 576 and 577 together. From March 2019 to date, my Department has spent the following amounts on face masks/coverings and hand sanitiser (excluding VAT). Face Masks:  €377,450 Hand Sanitiser: €472,000 Due to the initial emergency situation and subject to stock availability, my Department engaged with several suppliers for the provision of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Carer's allowance (CA) 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 child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care.   An application for CA was received from the person concerned on 21 December 2021. It is a condition for receipt of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Carer's allowance (CA) 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 child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. This is defined as requiring from another person, continual supervision and frequent assistance throughout the day in...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Ukraine War (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 580, 590, 624 and 640 together. On 4 March 2022, the Council of the European Union unanimously adopted the implementing decision regarding the Temporary Protection Directive, due to mass influx of persons fleeing Ukraine as a consequence of the war. This will allow Ukrainian citizens and others fleeing Ukraine to avail of supports throughout the EU.  I...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: An increase for qualified adult (IQA) is a means-tested payment, payable to a claimant whose spouse, civil partner or cohabitant is being wholly or mainly maintained by them, and where that qualified adult’s personal means from any source does not exceed a means test income limit. Where a qualified adult has weekly means of less than €100, the maximum rate of IQA is...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Traveller Community (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I welcome the publication of the Report of the Joint Committee on Key Issues Affecting the Traveller Community (‘the Report’).  It contains a number of recommendations for the Department of Social Protection with the objective of improving employment outcomes for members of the Traveller community.  I am keenly aware of the high levels of unemployment among...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is payable in respect of children with a severe disability who require care and attention substantially in excess of that required by children of a similar age without such a disability, providing this additional care is likely to last for at least 12 months.  In 2020 there were 5,389 awarded claims and 1,045 disallowed claims. The breakdown by...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is payable in respect of children with a severe disability who require care and attention substantially in excess of that required by children of a similar age without their disability, providing this additional care is likely to last for at least 12 months. The assessment process used in the consideration of whether a child meets the criteria for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Domiciliary Care Allowance  ( DCA) is payable in respect of children with a severe disability who require care and attention substantially in excess of that required by children of a similar age without their disability, providing this additional care is likely to last for at least 12 months. The assessment process used in the consideration of whether a child meets the criteria for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: I am advised by Revenue that a chargeable period is defined in section 959A of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (TCA) as an accounting period for a company or a tax year for an individual and other taxpayer types.  A tax year is the same as the calendar year, i.e., from 1 January to 31 December. I am further advised that section 865 of the TCA provides a general right to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (22 Mar 2022)

Heather Humphreys: Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, Community Welfare Officers in my Department can make an Exceptional Needs Payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income.  The ENP scheme is demand led and payments are made at the discretion of the officers administering the scheme, taking...