Results 16,941-16,960 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Benefit (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: Self-employed workers who earn €5,000 or more in a contribution year, are liable to pay social insurance contributions at the class S rate of 4%, subject to a minimum annual payment of €500. Such contributors are currently covered for a wide range of social insurance benefits including State pension (contributory), widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's pension...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Government acknowledges the crucial role that family carers play and is fully committed to supporting carers in that role. This commitment is recognised in both the Programme for Government and the National Carers’ Strategy. The main income supports to carers provided by my Department are Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance and the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Christmas Bonus will be paid in the week beginning 7th December to social welfare recipients, such as pensioners, people with disabilities, carers and lone parents in recognition of their long-term financial dependence on social welfare payments for all, or most, of their income. In recognition of the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic has had on employment levels and the sudden...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: Government has agreed that the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) will continue in payment until end March 2021. This extension provides certainty to people, including those in the arts and entertainment sectors, that access to PUP remains available. The rate of PUP is aligned with prior earnings. Since mid-October the €350 rate of PUP has been re-introduced for individuals with...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The onset of the Covid-19 Pandemic, and resulting public health measures, has greatly impacted economic activity in the State and the labour market. The latest CSO data records a Covid-19 adjusted overall unemployment rate of 20.2 percent, with an equivalent measure for youth at just over 45 percent. With the second wave of Covid-19 and the subsequent introduction of Level 5 restrictions...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Free Travel Scheme (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Free Travel Scheme is currently available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over, to carers and to customers under 66 who are in receipt of certain disability type payments. There are currently approximately 980,595 customers in receipt of Free Travel. However, over 1.6 million people currently benefit from the scheme when companion and spousal passes are taken into...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Personal Public Service Numbers (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The SAFE registration process, which involves the authentication of a person's identity in a face-to-face interview, is the normal method of processing an application for a Personal Public Service Number (PPS Number). At the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, my Department temporarily suspended the SAFE registration process. This decision was taken in order to comply with...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carbon Tax (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The report on the impact assessment of the current and projected future increases in carbon tax on low-income families by my Department was required by Section 25 of Social Welfare no. 2 Act 2019 (Number 48 of 2019). The development and operation of emergency social welfare measures and the diversion of staffing resources required to deal with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic have, of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Free Travel Scheme (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Free Travel Scheme is currently available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over, to carers and to customers under 66 who are in receipt of certain disability type payments. There are currently approximately 980,595 customers in receipt of Free Travel. However, over 1.6 million people currently benefit from the scheme when companion and spousal passes are taken into...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Fuel Allowance (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The fuel allowance is a payment of €24.50 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €686 each year) from October to April, to an average of 352,000 low income households, at an estimated cost of €261.35 million in 2020. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. The allowance represents a contribution towards the energy costs of a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The main income supports to carers provided by my Department are Carer’s Allowance, Carer’s Benefit and the Carer’s Support Grant. Combined spending on the above payments to carers in 2020 is expected to exceed €1.3 billion. In responding to COVID-19, the Department has made special provisions for those who may be most vulnerable and negatively affected at...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Data Protection (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has been the subject of three investigations by the Data Protection Commission from 2016 to date. These are as follows: 1. PSC On 27thOctober 2017, the DPC wrote to the Department informing it that it was initiating an own-volition investigation pursuant to Section 10(1A) of the Data Protection Acts into the Department’s compliance with its responsibilities as a data...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, decided to disallow the appeal of the person concerned. Under social welfare legislation the decision of an Appeals Officer is final and conclusive and may only be reviewed in the light of additional evidence or new facts. I am advised that the person concerned...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pension (Contributory) (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The rate of State pension (contributory) entitlement for the person concerned has been reviewed. Their contribution record has been updated for the years 2011, 2012 and 2013. They have been awarded an increase in pension, based on a yearly average calculation of 16, to 65% of the maximum weekly rate of State pension (contributory). They have also been awarded a commensurate rise in the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Carer's Allowance (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: Carer's allowance (CA) is a means-tested social assistance payment made to a person who is habitually resident in the State and who is providing full-time care and attention to a child or an adult who has such a disability that as a result they require that level of care. Means are any income belonging to the carer and their spouse, civil partner, or cohabitant, property, (except their own...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The fuel allowance is a payment of €24.50 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €686 each year) from October to April, to an average of 352,000 low income households, at an estimated cost of €261.35 million in 2020. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. The allowance represents a contribution towards the energy costs of a...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The person concerned made a claim for Pandemic Unemployment Payment on 6th October 2020, having last worked on 4th October 2020. He received his first payment on the 13th October 2020 and is in receipt of the payment each week thereafter, to date. In order to receive the Pandemic Unemployment Payment Christmas bonus the person must: - Be eligible to receive payment in respect of the Pandemic...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: I confirm that an application from the person concerned for disability allowance (DA) was received by the Department on 17 September 2020. The processing time for individual DA claims may vary in accordance with their relative complexity in terms of the three main qualifying criteria, the person’s circumstances and the information they provide in support of their claim. The...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Disability Support Services (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The table below gives a breakdown of the estimate of expenditure for 2021 sub-head A.29 - Disability Activation Supports: 2021 Estimate of Expenditure - Disability Activation Support €000 1. Employability Service 11,400 2. Ability 1,760 3. Disability Employment Support Grants ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Exceptional Needs Payment (3 Dec 2020)

Heather Humphreys: According to the records of my Department, the person concerned was awarded an Exceptional Needs Payment (ENP) on 10/03/2020 for €2,797 towards a ‘ kit out’ of her new accommodation. Since then the person concerned has made no further applications for an ENP. Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, my Department can make a single ENP to help meet...