Results 12,821-12,840 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: I do not want to say that until I have an opportunity to examine the matter.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: I understand there will be an Estimates debate early in the new year. I will certainly ask to have it looked at and perhaps take the opportunity to have some discussion on the matter at that point, or earlier if, in fact, a satisfactory resolution is reached.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: I want to revise a figure. I confirm that the FIS spending figure for next year will be €350 million. We did have these discussions and our dear departed advisers may have had a lot of ideas on how to simplify things. We examined all the ideas. My overwhelming political priority is to get people back to work. The reform of the FIS scheme has made FIS much easier to avail of....
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: Yes. When people come in for activation procedures introduced by the Department we sit them down in a group engagement and list for them all of the potential opportunities, ranging from education, training and work experience to employment. Subsequently, we offer people a tailored programme. One of the key points is that we have a response if somebody says: "Between myself and my family we...
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: No. The supports are as they were, but they are now taken up.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: It was very difficult for people to take them up before until we made improvements in IT systems.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: I move amendment No. 3: In page 3, line 10, to delete “The Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005” and substitute “The Principal Act”.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: Two measures in the budget are relevant to people with children, aside from the discussion we just had on people parenting on their own. The first is the increase payment of €5 a month to each child in receipt of child benefit. There is a commitment for a further increase of €5 in the next budget if resources permit. It is important to keep that caveat in mind. The economy...
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: The back to work family dividend is estimated to cost €22 million. It will be backdated to 1 January. I anticipate the legislation dealing with this will be introduced in another social welfare Bill in the spring. The plan, subject to the Dáil timetable, is to have it enacted by 1 April 2015.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: It is the total amount of money that will be spent on FIS. We are advertising it much more. Last year, we introduced a better off in work calculator which allows a family to compare benefits to working. In 2007, when the economy started to go down the hill, the amount spent on FIS was €140 million. The expected expenditure this year on FIS is €281 million. We anticipate it...
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: May I correct one of the Deputy's figures? He mentioned a reduction in social welfare of over €3 billion.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: Did I mishear him?
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: The Government of which he was a member reduced it by €2.4 billion.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: There was a subsequent reduction-----
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: The Deputy's party broke the economy.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: It ended up with 250,000 people losing their jobs but I am happy that today's figures demonstrate that we have again increased the number of people at work. Today, there is an unemployment rate of 10.9%.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: It is very good progress for the country. The Deputy has never apologised for what his Government did and he now has the opportunity to say he regrets-----
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: -----taking over €16 per week from people. He should regret that his Government drove all those people into unemployment. Many people never wanted to be on social welfare.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: They were driven to unemployment.
- Committee on Education and Social Protection: Select Sub-Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare Bill 2014: Committee Stage (26 Nov 2014)
Joan Burton: Will the Deputy apologise to all the people whose businesses were smashed and who were driven to unemployment?