Results 1,281-1,300 of 16,746 for speaker:Dara Calleary

Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Rural and Community Development Matters: Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: With regard to community facilities and where we can have colocation, we need it, and we will have it. Colocation facilities are the way to go. In terms of running them, coming back to the Minister if State's remarks about volunteers, the more colocation, the less pressure there is. Community facilities must also be built with accessibility in mind, both physical accessibility and sensory...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Jobseeker's Pay-Related Benefit scheme is available to those whose unemployment begins on or after 31 March as provided for in the Commencement Order and section 68KB(1)(d) of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005, as amended. People who became fully unemployed before 31 March will remain on Jobseeker's Benefit until they return to employment, or their benefit runs out, whichever...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Government acknowledges the valuable role that family carers play and is fully committed to supporting carers in that role. The Programme for Government has clearly set out a timeline which commits to significantly increasing the income disregards for Carer’s Allowance in each Budget with a view to phasing out the means test during the lifetime of the Government. This is a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Schemes (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Humanitarian Assistance Scheme, administered by my department, was activated in November 2024 to assist householders affected by Storm Bert and again in January 2025 to assist householders affected by Storm Éowyn. The purpose of the Humanitarian Assistance Scheme is to provide financial support to people whose homes are damaged and who are not able to meet costs for essential...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Schemes (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Wage Subsidy Scheme is a key disability employment support. It aims to encourage employers to offer substantial and sustainable employment to people with disabilities through a subsidy. The table shows expenditure in the period 2020-2024 and the number of employers and employees involved in the Scheme. Year 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: This Government acknowledges the important role that carers, including foster carers, play and remains fully committed to supporting them. That is why I was really pleased to announce that Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance eligibility is being extended to include children for whom Foster Care Allowance is being paid. The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The estimated annual cost of increasing the weekly rate of Community Employment, Tús and the Rural Social Scheme by €1 is €1.64 million. It should be noted that this costing includes a proportionate increase for qualified adults and for those on reduced rates of payment, where relevant. This costing is based on the estimated average number of recipients in 2025, and is...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children up to the age of 16 years. Currently, the payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their nineteenth birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. Child Benefit is currently in payment in respect of approximately 1.2 million children with an estimated expenditure of €2.2 billion...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children up to the age of 16 years. Currently, the payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their 19th birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. Child Benefit is currently in payment in respect of approximately 1.2 million children with an estimated expenditure of €2.2 billion for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: This Government acknowledges the important role that carers, including foster carers, play and remains fully committed to supporting them. That is why I was really pleased to announce that Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance eligibility is being extended to include children for whom Foster Care Allowance is being paid. The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The estimated annual cost of increasing pension payments to all recipients aged 66 years or over by €1 is €40.6 million. This includes the following schemes but only where payable to those people aged 66 and over:State Pension (Contributory)Widow/er's or Surviving Civil Partner's (Contributory) PensionDeserted Wife's BenefitDeath Benefit PensionState Pension...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The estimated annual cost of bringing all working-age social welfare weekly payments (at 2025 rates) in line with the recently published MESL 2025 rates is €1.51 billion. It should be noted that this costing includes a proportionate increase for qualified adults and for those on reduced rates of payment, where relevant. This costing is based on the estimated average number of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The cost of extending the One-Parent Family Payment by five years, until the youngest child reaches age 12, is difficult to accurately estimate as it is challenging to predict the future movement of customers into and between schemes and the subsequent cost implications relating to secondary benefits. Some people whose youngest child is aged between 7 and 12 may be in receipt of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: While the Deputy does not specify an amount by which to increase Living Alone Allowance, currently €22 per week, in order to provide an estimated annual cost to answer the question, we have set out the estimated full year cost of increasing the Living Alone Allowance by €1 per week from €22 to €23 per week, which is €13.1 million. This costing is based...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: My Department's payment systems do not disaggregate expenditure by recipient age; therefore I regret that we cannot provide accurate information in the format that the Deputy has requested.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children up to the age of 16 years. Currently, the payment continues to be paid in respect of children until their 19th birthday where they are in full-time education or have a disability. To receive Child Benefit in Ireland, parents must be habitually resident in the State. Applicants for International Protection do not satisfy...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The State Pension (Contributory) (SPC) is funded from the Social Insurance Fund through the contributions paid by workers. The rate of payment reflects the number of social insurance contributions paid over a working life. Eligibility for SPC is based on a number of criteria:Being aged 66 or over.Having entered the Social Insurance system 10 years before you intend to drawdown your...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: Carer's Benefit (CARB) is a payment made to insured people who leave the workforce or reduce their working hours to care for a child or an adult in need of full-time care and attention. To qualify the carer must satisfy PRSI conditions, employment conditions, show that they are providing full-time care and attention and must show that the care recipient requires full-time care and...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Departmental Programmes (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The current LEADER programme is co-financed by the European Commission under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), through the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development. It is connected to Objective 8 of the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP). The total amount of funding allocated to LEADER for the period of 2021-2027 is €250 million, maintaining the level of funding of the previous...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Rural Schemes (2 Jul 2025)

Dara Calleary: The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) is a key support for rural communities in improving non-public roads and laneways that are not usually maintained by local authorities. Since its reintroduction in 2017, the government has provided almost €170 million to local authorities under the Scheme. The Programme for Government commits to the provision of additional funding for the LIS. As...