Results 1,821-1,840 of 27,613 for speaker:Heather Humphreys

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Insurance (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank Deputy Murphy. The PRSI system plays a fundamental and supportive role in our society. For the PRSI contributions they make, employees and self-employed workers receive benefits for the periods spent out of employment during periods of unemployment, illness or maternity, for example, and upon retirement from the workforce. One of the findings of the latest actuarial review of the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Insurance (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: If the Deputy wants to keep the pension age at 66, he should realise it has to be paid for. That is the reality. Sometimes he is a bit detached from reality. With him, it is usually a case of spend, spend, spend on the grounds that somebody else can pay for it. That is how he operates. He got his answer at the weekend. People are not buying his view. The Government parties won over 500...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Insurance (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The recently agreed PRSI rate increases, although still very significantly under the EU average, achieve a fair balance between addressing the long-term sustainability of the Social Insurance Fund and maintaining the State pension age at 66. The proposal is not unduly impinging on the incomes of workers and the cost of doing business in Ireland. There is a very simple point that I...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Appeals (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy. They can ask for a review and if the review fails it then goes to an appeal. Often the issue gets resolved at review stage because maybe further information has been provided and then it goes through. We are changing the system. It has been modernised to improve the efficiencies and to decide quicker. I understand how important it is that people get an answer quickly...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Rates (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: As the Minister for Social Protection and during the lifetime of this Government, I am proud to have introduced many improvements to the social protection system. As part of budget 2024, I secured a €2.3 billion social protection package. This was, for the second year in a row, the largest social protection budget in the history of the State. Post-budget analysis from the ESRI...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Rates (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Yes we have a number of schemes. There is the basic payment and then there are social transfers that also kick in depending on family size and depending on the situation. A number of different variables are taken into account when determining the default payment a family receives from social welfare. These variables are reviewed every year when I look at them. There are other things I...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Rates (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I am glad the Deputy brought this matter up. Due to the child maintenance review that was carried out, I have changed the legislation so that from the beginning of this month, child maintenance is no longer taken into consideration as part of the means test. A person does not have to go to court to prove what he or she is getting or not getting. All of that is being disregarded and...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Appeals (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter and for his kind comments about the staff of the Department. The social welfare appeals office is an office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions relating to social welfare entitlements. Appeals officers are independent in their decision-making functions. Significant efforts and...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Appeals (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I thank the Deputy. I have a table that sets out all the data and the appeals processing times in weeks by scheme for January to December of 2023. The one that seems to have the most appeals is illness benefit, with a processing time of 40.9 weeks. I will get this sent to the Deputy, because I have only just received it. I am not too sure how many weeks it took, but they were finalised...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Citizens Information Services (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I am very aware of and wish to acknowledge the important advocacy services that the National Advocacy Service provides to adults with disabilities across the country, helping to ensure their wishes and preferences are heard in decisions that affect their everyday lives. As you are aware, the National Advocacy Service is a company limited by guarantee, and a registered charity. It is funded to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Habitual residence is a condition that must be satisfied in order to qualify for certain social welfare payments and applies to everyone, irrespective of nationality. The habitual residence condition (HRC) consists of two parts, both of which need to be satisfied. The first part of HRC requires the person to have an unconditional, established right of residence in this country i.e. they are...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence at...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. The Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that the current response time to the Oireachtas representatives’ email...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Act 2020, provided, amongst other provisions, for the attribution of social insurance contributions to insured persons who were beneficiaries of certain Covid-19 income support payments. These payments included the pandemic unemployment payment and the temporary wage subsidy scheme. Consequently, self-employed individuals who were in receipt of the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: International Protection (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: My department administers the Daily Expenses Allowance (DEA) which is paid to protection applicants who reside in, or are waiting for, accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Services (IPAS). The current weekly rates of payment are €38.80 per adult and €29.80 per child. An increased rate of €113.80 per week for an adult applies where a person...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Illness benefit is the primary short term income support provided by my Department to those who are unable to work due to illness of any type and who are covered by social insurance. Eligibility for illness benefit depends on the person’s PRSI record and class. The person must have made the required number of contributions under class A, E, H or P to qualify. In general, self-employed...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions. The average processing times for all appeals finalised in 2023 was 16 weeks. Significant efforts and resources have been devoted to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) Act 2014 introduced a positive duty on public bodies to have due regard to human rights and equality issues. The Department provides ongoing supports and learning programmes for staff to create awareness in relation to equality for the benefit of staff and customers. All new staff undertake a mandatory three-day Induction and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Legislative Measures (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The following Bills are currently before the Oireachtas, which I expect to see enacted before the summer recess: The Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Systems Bill 2024 has completed all stages in Dáil Éireann and Second Stage in Seanad Éireann. Committee and Report Stages in the Seanad are scheduled for 19th June 2024. This Bill is designed to give legislative effect to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (11 Jun 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Invalidity Pension (IP) is a payment for people who are permanently incapable of work because of illness or incapacity and for no other reason and who satisfy the contribution conditions. The spouse of the person referred to was awarded IP from 23 August 2007 which was due to go into payment from 08 November 2007. However, as he passed away on 5 November 2007, he did not receive any IP...