Results 1,541-1,560 of 28,255 for speaker:Éamon Ó Cuív

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I find the numbers interesting, as there were 57,000 recipients in 2016, and 47,000 recipients in 2022, which is a decrease. To me, the decrease seems to have been caused by increased wages or salaries that people are paid. The scheme seems to have a good scope and I am curious to learn whether, when budget 2024 was being prepared, there was a projection as to how many people would be...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Yes, but does the Minister accept that while somebody could come up with a fantastic scheme, the problem is getting there? I ask that any changes made are incremental, rather than adopting a big-bang approach where we would have to rip up the whole system and replace it overnight.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I mean that the Minister should know where she is trying to get to and she will get there over time, by adjusting schemes like means-testing, the jobseeker's allowance, the working family payment, etc. We should get there that way, rather than in a big bang where we eliminate the old system and some day bring in a basic income system or whatever.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Yes.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Yes, incrementally.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I really appreciate that, as I was going to ask the Minister about that later. Does she think that she will then legislate and make regulations later in the year?

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: There is one curious thing. From 2016 to 2022, the number of one-parent families getting the working family payment increased from 28,000 to 29,000 while the number of two-parent families getting it decreased from 29,000 to 18,000. The loss has been entirely among two-parent families rather than one-parent families.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: That is what I am saying. That means this scheme is not costing more in real terms, so a lot more generosity can be afforded.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I take the Minister's point too. Absolutely.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: What is the purpose of the section?

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: There was a debate just now with Deputy Durkan about the fact that the domiciliary care allowance ends at age 16. This is probably one of the trickiest payments for us to do the right thing because some parents like the €220, even though it is going to a child, but a lot of parents do not like it because it is going to the child. Sooner or later, society will have to grasp the nettle...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I thank the Minister.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I hear what the Minister is saying about the review. We will have to see how granular it is. Some of the weirder anomalies are in the small print. For instance, non-contributory pensioners can have a job earning €200 a week but a self-employed person cannot have any income that is not assessed. Then it gets worse. I know a lot of three- to four-cow farmers in Connemara. The first...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Is the €5,000 ignored?

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Okay. However, people are only allowed to earn €30,000 and the penalty is 100% after that. Is that not correct? People get the first €30,000 of income but, after that, there is a 100% penalty. Unfortunately, many of these very small farmers do not keep all their receipts. The social welfare officers are fair enough and always take a certain amount of State payments at...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: It will only cost the Minister in Connemara. There is no farmer that poor elsewhere.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: I spend my life doing that for very small farmers.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: Furthermore, I have educated them to keep the receipts. I tell them to throw the receipts in a biscuit tin and bring it in to me.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: At least if the farmer has the receipts, you can do something about it. This is hitting a very vulnerable group and there is really no money involved. Something I was made aware of is that even when the Minister raised the income limit on the fuel allowance very generously, there was still an issue. I was given some statistics recently in the reply to a parliamentary question, for which I...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (29 Nov 2023)

Éamon Ó Cuív: This issue does not affect a huge number of people but for those it does affect, particularly if it is retrospective, it is fairly serious and painful. If they had only known how to operate the things legally, the problem would have been easy to avoid. Some of these changes could be done quickly, would not have huge cost implications and would make for a fairer system. I am really...