Results 15,781-15,800 of 34,664 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: The point I am making is that the average debts, as set out, are building up to create a bad impression. The reality, however, is that of the 190,000 people who owe the Department money, most do not owe very much at all. Another issue of concern to me is that the application forms which go out from the Department, for carer's benefit or allowance, disability benefit and so on, are heavily...

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: I am a lay person, not a medical expert, but Oireachtas Members are stakeholders in this in our own way. We will all be dealing with such cases in our constituencies tomorrow. In fairness, the service we receive is always courteous and prompt. On the appeals process, the first stage is that the deciding officer makes a decision on an application. The applicant then has 21 days to submit...

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: I am referring to the outcome of the internal departmental reviews.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: This is very important information. Ms Gordon is saying that of the appeals which go to her office and result in a favourable outcome, which is some 60% of all appeals received by the office, 40% of that 60% - which amounts to approximately 25% of the total - are revised by the original deciding officer, perhaps having had the benefit of a more recent medical report.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Where a person submits a more up-to-date consultant's report, which the deciding officer did not have when making the original decision, does the appeals office send that report to the deciding officer?

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: To put it another way, of the 16,000 appeals that went into Ms Gordon's office, the original decision was upheld in 40% of cases and 25% of them were revised by the Department.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Ms Gordon is saying that of the 100% of applications submitted, 35% were given a favourable response by her office. People are not aware of this. We do hear of decisions being changed by deciding officers in the Department, but the tendency has been to give 100% of the credit for favourable appeal outcomes to the appeals office. However, Ms Gordon has indicated that in 40% of cases where...

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: That information is not being made clear. We hear about the 60% of cases where a change is made, but it is now clear that a significant portion of them are being done by the Department.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: The information is not out there at all. I have seen examples in my constituency work, but I was not conscious of the significance of the portion of revised decisions that are taken within the Department rather than by the appeals office. It is good to have that information on the record and it reflects well on the appeals process. When a deciding officer makes a decision, a letter goes...

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Does it not apply to all schemes?

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: It is only medical.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Will Mr. McKeon clarify this for me?

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: I understood that a decision gets made and a person can send in additional information directly to the Department. I can show Mr. McKeon umpteen letters. Maybe it has to do with the phraseology. I have been unable to understand them and if I cannot understand the Department's letters, the poor punter cannot do so either. I am not talking about the appeals office at all.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Do many go to the Ombudsman? Do many get overturned? What percentage of cases are overturned having gone through the Department, its review and the appeals office? What percentage of cases would the Ombudsman make a change in after all that or do the witnesses know?

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Somebody who owes €20,000 or €30,000 or something like that.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: people are informed of their right to go to the Ombudsman at the end of the process.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Could Ms Stack send us-----

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: Ms Stack might send us a note. The Office of the Ombudsman will have the number of cases.

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: From the Department's point of view, the system works very well in terms of its attachment orders. We have not mentioned that today. I have to say that I am aware of cases where having gone through the Ombudsman where a decision was contested, the decision came back to the Department and the Department then wrote to the individual and within 24 hours, it has its money. I have seen cases of...

Public Accounts Committee: Comptroller and Auditor General 2016 Report
Chapter 16: Regularity of Social Welfare Payments
Chapter 17: Management of Social Welfare Overpayments
Chapter 18: Department Reviews of welfare Schemes, Social Welfare Appeals Process, Social Insurance Fund (7 Dec 2017)

Seán Fleming: I think the witnesses must acknowledge this because there was no emphasis on chasing overpayments in the past because it was not worth the Department's while given it could only claim back €2 per week, the Department is now finding that the records are sometimes not great and there are old records in some of its branch offices around the country. That is a matter in respect of which...