Results 1,621-1,640 of 5,587 for speaker:Kevin Humphreys

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The information the Deputy is requesting is freely available by way of parliamentary questions. I am not going to waste the time of the House by going through every single cut introduced by the previous Administration because it crashed the economy. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh referred to the recovery. It has started, but, unfortunately, not for everybody. I welcome the unemployment...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: There is great merit in the Deputy's proposal for a scheme that would give people the tools to develop an ethos of saving for life events and avoid the need to approach moneylenders. The scheme we have provided for in this Bill will be up and running this week and will operate initially on a six-month pilot basis. We have agreement with An Post to move forward on the basis the legislation...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: An additional €98 million in supports for families and children is provided for in budget 2016. Expenditure in 2015 on children is €1.9 billion, a significant amount. I cannot read minds. As stated by Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh, as this issue was not teased out on Committee Stage, I do not know the theory behind Deputy Thomas Pringle's amendment. The outcome of...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I expected the Deputy to raise it. I am only surprised he did not raise it on Committee Stage.

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I will take that as a compliment. The Deputy's proposal would have unintended consequences. If Tusla and the Department of Education and Skills come to the Department of Social Protection with a viable scheme, it will be looked at. We are putting in place new infrastructure for appeals mechanisms. On Deputy's point about Jenny's family losing their entitlement to child benefit after she...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I do not propose to accept Deputy Pringle's amendment. Deputy Ó Snodaigh made the point very clearly, so I do not need to repeat it. It is a question of a name change that reflects more clearly what carers do and it has been very positively received. Deputy Naughten made a very convincing case. I advise him to do as I suggested to Deputy Ó Snodaigh and raise the matter at the...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: It is the broader issue we intend to deal with. I took a note of the case raised by Deputy O'Dea and if he wishes, he can forward the details to me. Flexibility is available in terms of averaging payments over two weeks. I was quite surprised by the case Deputy O'Dea articulated but without knowing the detail, I could not respond. Deputy Naughten is speaking more about general policy and...

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Order for Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I move: "That Report Stage be taken now."

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Top be helpful to Deputy O'Dea, on Committee Stage I said I would circulate a written response to that. I will ensure that this is given to the committee, which will be circulated to the Deputy.

Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2015: Report Stage (18 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: No.

Other Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: The Government is trying to conduct evidence-based evaluations. Many schemes have been exceptionally successful across the country such as the JobsPlus element for the long-term unemployed. Moreover, it has been successful in the Deputy's native county where 60% of those involved in JobsPlus have been long-term unemployed. There has been a suite of measures in this regard and the...

Other Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I will just finish on this point, in fairness to Deputy O'Dea. We are tendering for an evaluation process. The tenders have gone out and we hope to have an evaluation process in place early in the new year.

Other Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: JobBridge has been a very successful programme, both for the participants and small and medium enterprises, SMEs. The closing date for the receipt of tenders was 19 October 2015 and the tender evaluation process has been completed. The Department has notified the preferred tenderer and in accordance with procurement guidelines is now observing the mandatory 14 days standstill period before...

Other Questions: National Internship Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: JobBridge is a national scheme which was introduced in July 2011 in response to the unprecedented collapse in the economy, particularly the sharp increase in unemployment. As the Deputy will remember, we were heading to have nearly 500,000 people unemployed and an unemployment rate from the live register of 15.1%. Thankfully, the figures today are much more positive and moving in the right...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I accept that the Deputy is being constructive in his suggestion, and we have been working with the Carers Association. As people move back into work it opens up other opportunities because it gives the Government further flexibility. One of the positive measures the Tánaiste has introduced within the Department of Social Protection is that there is a constant review to ensure the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: I thank the Deputy because it is not very often that Sinn Féin acknowledges that there is an increase in job availability but the numbers are improving. It is great to see people going back to work and when they do so it is certainly better for their families. There are several schemes and training programmes available: springboard offers 9,000 free places; skillnet actively...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Many voluntary groups such as the Peter McVerry Trust have welcomed what the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government has done in respect of this issue. As the Deputy knows, the HAP is operating in Limerick and is working well there. I understand there are 960 HAP payments in the Limerick area, of which 510 are for new applicants. I would like to ensure that nobody is...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Community Employment Schemes Eligibility (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: All current schemes are kept under review in respect of how well they work. Community employment, CE, is the largest employment programme administered by the Department and is a valuable resource for both jobseekers and communities. The Deputy knows the work done by CE schemes in the Ballyfermot area. Currently, there are almost 22,500 participants and nearly 1,400 supervisors employed on...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: Primary responsibility for the provision of emergency accommodation rests with local authorities, as the Deputy well knows. The Department’s role with regard to homeless persons is mainly income maintenance. Rent supplement plays a vital role in housing families, with the scheme currently supporting approximately 63,000 people, at a cost of €298 million in 2015. Properties...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rent Supplement Scheme Administration (17 Nov 2015)

Kevin Humphreys: It was 4,700.