Results 12,901-12,920 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: Age related reduced rates for young Jobseekers allowance recipients were introduced in 2009 in line with other EU and OECD jurisdictions, to address the issue of high youth unemployment by incentivising them to participate in employment, education and training programmes. The rate of payment is €112.70 per week for young jobseekers aged between 18 and 24 year olds; however it...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Reports (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The Gateway initiative was introduced in 2013 at a time of high unemployment in Ireland, with a target of 3,000 working opportunities. Gateway provided work placements in Local Authorities for a period of 22 months for those who were unemployed for more than two years. During its lifetime the initiative supported 2,981 individuals. Given the capacity of other employment schemes such...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Hospice Services (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: In Budget 2020, a budget of €60,000 was provided to support the Irish Hospice Foundation (IHF) in carrying out a research project into funeral poverty in Ireland. The purpose of the independent research by the IHF is to examine how bereavement affects people, particularly the economic impact of death. It seeks to trace the dynamics of bereavement in Ireland, identify immediate and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Policies (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. When an appeal is assigned to an Appeals Officer for consideration the Appeals Officer makes a summary decision on the appeal based on the documentary evidence presented...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. The table below provides the number of Appeals Officer decisions which were made by way of oral hearing in each year from 2017 to the end of September 2021. It also...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: Funding of the nature referred to by the Deputy is not available under LEADER as the programme does not fund Public Body/Local Authority projects. A new Project Development Measure (up to €50,000) was introduced on a trial basis into the 2021 Town and Village Renewal Scheme. Local Authorities were invited to submit one project development proposal for grant funding up to €50,000...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Legislative Measures (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has overall policy responsibility for the Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010. The Act provides a robust regulatory framework for, inter alia, the licensing, monitoring and inspection of dog breeding establishments by local authorities and, where a serious and immediate threat exists to public health or animal health and welfare, for the closure of such establishments. The...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Animal Breeding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has overall policy responsibility for the Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010. The Act provides a robust regulatory framework for, inter alia, the licensing, monitoring and inspection of dog breeding establishments by local authorities and, where a serious and immediate threat exists to public health or animal health and welfare, for the closure of such establishments. The...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Flexible Work Practices (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: Our Rural Future, Ireland’s Rural Development Policy 2021-2025, recognises the opportunity for rural rejuvenation that remote working presents and also the potential of remote working hubs as key economic assets for our rural towns and villages. In May I launched the National Connected Hubs network together with the connectedhubs.ie platform. This platform will offer a suite of...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: EU Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The social and economic development of rural Ireland is integral to the wellbeing of our country as a whole and to our quality of life. Ireland’s economy, heritage and culture is heavily dependent on the contribution of rural areas. Our Rural Future, the government’s new rural development policy, provides a framework for the development of rural Ireland over the next five years....

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: Supporting the development of resilient and sustainable communities is at the heart of my Department's mission and, as part of that, we are working with local communities to help Ireland's transition to a low carbon, sustainable and climate resilient society through the wide range of programmes, supports and initiatives we deliver. While we do not provide direct funding to transition year...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1265 and 1267 together. The LEADER programme is a key intervention implemented by my Department which will help to underpin the Government's rural development goals as outlined in Our Rural Future. The programme is co-funded by the EU under Pillar II the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is Ireland's...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1266, 1268 and 1269 together. The original allocation for the LEADER elements of the Rural Development Programme 2007-2013 was almost €400 million. LEADER funding for the 2007-2013 programming period was not allocated based on county boundaries but to individual Local Action Groups (LAGs) on completion of the Local Development Strategy process. The...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The LEADER + Programme which operated from 2000 to 2006 had a total allocation of €72 million and was delivered by 22 Local Action Groups (LAGs) throughout the country. Table 1 below provides a breakdown of the LEADER allocations for the LEADER + period. Table 1 - Local Action Group Allocations 2000 – 2006 LAG Allocation Ballyhoura...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Offshore Islands (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: My Department provides funding for an annual programme for minor capital works on our offshore islands, including island road repair. Each year the Department requests the relevant local authorities to submit a list of minor capital works that they wish to undertake on the islands and after review the Department provides co-funding to the Local Authority to undertake these projects. ...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Contracts (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The Department of Rural and Community Development was established in July 2017 and does not have any contracts of an indefinite period entered into prior to the enactment of the EU Procurement Directive 2014/24/EU.

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Broadband Infrastructure (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: The Broadband Connection Point (BCP) initiative includes both Public BCPs and School BCPs, the latter are the responsibility of the Department of Education and any queries relating to them are accordingly a matter for that Department. There are two companies involved in the delivery of Public BCPs: NBI, under contract to the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, delivers...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Broadband Infrastructure (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: Broadband Connection Points (BCPs) are among the first deliverables under the National Broadband Plan (NBP) contract. Initially, these sites were considered an interim measure for those areas likely to wait longest for permanent connections under the NBP - publicly accessible internet for those without adequate connectivity at home. However, as the BCP network build began, it became very...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Harbours and Piers (2 Nov 2021)

Heather Humphreys: As the Deputy will be aware, Galway County Council are the body responsible for development of stage three of the Caladh Mór pier development on Inis Meáin. Officials from my Department have been in ongoing contact with the relevant officials in the County Council to progress this development. As part of the preparatory works, the National Maritime College of Ireland (NMCI)...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Victim Support Services (21 Oct 2021)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy Tully for raising this issue because it is only through open discussion that we get the message out there to people that those supports are there. Ensuring that victims are better supported by the criminal justice system, including by ensuring that they are fully informed of their rights, is a priority for the Government. A significant part of the work to implement...