Results 17,761-17,780 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Dietary Allowance (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: Diet supplement, administered under the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, is payable to qualifying persons, in receipt of the supplement prior to February 2014, who have been prescribed a special diet as a result of a specified medical condition. There are currently 1,800 people in receipt of diet supplement at a cost of €1.1 million in 2019. A review of the costs of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Government has extended the pandemic unemployment payment until 31stMarch 2021 and I have secured Government approval to extend the closing date for new applications for the pandemic unemployment scheme to the end of this year. One of the qualifying conditions for self- employed people to receive the pandemic unemployment payment is that they must have suffered a reduction in their...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Aer Lingus (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has engaged with Aer Lingus and an agreed process is in place so that any outstanding information required to finalise decisions on social welfare entitlements will be provided by the company to their employees as quickly as possible. I understand the company is providing the information required as agreed with my Department to their employees. Jobseeker’s claims from Aer...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Dormant Accounts Fund (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: My Department has an approved €5 million allocation under the Dormant Accounts Action Plan 2020 which will provide Measures to Support and Improve Employment Opportunities (including self-employment) for Persons with a Disability and Carers. Applications for funding are invited from community and voluntary organisations working at local and/or national level that wish to support and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Government quickly mobilised and implemented a range of income and employment support measures, including the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP), to cushion the income shock experienced by workers and their employers. These income supports have proven to be effective in maintaining incomes and insulating people against a sudden and severe...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizens Information Services (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Citizens Information Board (CIB) is the statutory body responsible for supporting the provision of information, advice (including money and budgeting advice) and advocacy services on a wide range of public and social services. A national network of Citizens Information Centres, overseen by regional Citizens Information Service companies provides information, advice and advocacy services...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The current position in relation to the pandemic unemployment payment is that it can be paid concurrently with certain social assistance payments, including disability allowance. The pandemic unemployment payment is not assessed as means.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The person concerned initially applied for Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) on 6/4/2020 indicating that he last worked on 13/3/2020. He was awarded the PUP from 3/4/2020. My Department’s records reflect that the person concerned closed his PUP application as he was returning to work on 3/7/2020. Since the introduction of the PUP scheme in March, approximately 750,000...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pensions Reform (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Programme for Government “Our Shared Future” sets out how the planned increase in the State pension age next year will be deferred and it will remain at 66 years pending the report of the Commission on Pensions. This will require amendment to primary legislation and the Government will bring the necessary legislation before the Oireachtas later this year. As the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: As announced in the July Stimulus package, the enterprise support grant was extended to assist eligible self-employed, including sole traders, who exit the Pandemic Unemployment Payment or jobseekers schemes after 18th May 2020 to re-start their business which was closed due to the impact of the pandemic. The grant, of up to €1,000, is payable to self-employed individuals who employ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Act 2020 put the pandemic unemployment payment on a statutory basis since 5th August and the scheme has been extended until the end of March 2021. I have also secured agreement to keep the pandemic unemployment payment open for new applications until the end of 2020. Applicants must satisfy the qualifying conditions of the scheme to be eligible for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Parental Leave (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: Parent's leave and benefit is currently payable for two weeks to both parents, including those who adopt a child, who are employees or self-employed and who take parent’s leave from their employment to care for their child. This is in addition to existing maternity, paternity and adoptive leave and benefit entitlements. In line with a Government decision in July 2020, officials of my...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Pension Provisions (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The new Programme for Government contains a commitment to introduce a pension auto-enrolment system. The objective of this commitment is to address the low proportion of employees in Ireland with supplementary pension cover, which includes both occupational and personal pensions. The rate of supplementary pension coverage in Ireland is just over 50% of the working population (CSO, Pension...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Illness Benefit (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Government is committed to enhancing the position of the self-employed through improving the level of PRSI based benefits available to self-employed people and through a supportive tax regime. Self-employed persons are liable for PRSI at the Class S rate of 4% which covers them for access to long-term benefits such as State pension (contributory), widow's, widower's or surviving...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Working Family Payment (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Working Family Payment is an in-work support which provides an income top-up for employees on low earnings with children. It is designed to prevent in-work poverty for low paid workers with child dependents and to offer a financial incentive to take-up employment. To qualify for Working Family Payment, the average total weekly family income must be below the relevant income...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Back to Education Allowance (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 170 and 174 together. The Back to Education Allowance (BTEA) provides income support for jobseekers and certain others in receipt of social welfare payments who pursue full-time courses of education at second or third level. The main focus of the allowance is to assist qualifying applicants to improve their educational qualifications and their prospects of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: Rent supplement continues to play a key role in supporting families and individuals in private rented accommodation, with the scheme currently supporting 19,984 active recipients. Since the introduction of the Government’s Covid-19 emergency response in March, 10,125 applications for rent supplement have been approved. Of this number, 5,823 remain in payment. The scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Disability Activation Projects (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The EmployAbility service both offers, and is associated with, a wide range of grants and provisions to support people with disabilities to secure and maintain paid employment in the open labour market. Integration is the essential feature of the EmployAbility service: People with disabilities should have the same opportunities to participate in all activities and to work with and alongside...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Work Placement Programmes (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The July Jobs Stimulus included commitments to €200m investment in training, education, skill development, work placement schemes, recruitment subsidies and jobs search and assistance measures aimed to help those who have lost their jobs find a new one, retrain or develop new skills, in particular for emerging growth sectors. Included in this is provision for a funded Work Placement...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (7 Oct 2020)

Heather Humphreys: The Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment PUP for the person concerned was reviewed as part of a Review Project. As there was no information recorded by the Revenue Commissioners relating to earnings for the person concerned, she was asked to provide evidence of her employment in line with the review. The evidence provided by the person concerned from her employer, confirmed that she did...