Results 18,921-18,940 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 480 to 482, inclusive, together. The information that the Deputy has requested is detailed in the following table. The costings are based on 2017 recipient numbers, and include the cost of proportionate increases in reduced rates and the qualified adult rates of payment, where applicable. It should be noted that the costings do not take into account...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Household Benefits Scheme (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The household benefits package (HHB) comprises the electricity or gas allowance, and the free television licence. My Department will spend approximately €232 million this year on HHB for over 425,000 customers. The package is generally available to people living in the State aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test....

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Data (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The rent supplement scheme, for which the Government has provided €253 million for in 2017, plays a vital role in housing families and individuals, with the scheme supporting approximately 45,500 tenants. In recognition of the on-going rental market difficulties, my Department implements a targeted case-by-case policy approach that allows for flexibility where landlords seek rents in...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pensions Legislation (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: If the funding of a pension scheme is not sufficient to satisfy the Funding Standard, the trustees may apply to the Pensions Authority for what is referred to as a “Section 50 order”. Under such an order, accrued benefits relating to members’ past service can be reduced. Scheme members subject to a Section 50 amendment must be notified in advance of the proposed...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The savings arising from the initial reduction and subsequent discontinuance of the telephone allowance meant that my Department was able to retain the other valuable elements of the household benefits package such as the electricity and gas allowance and the television licence. My Department will spend approximately €232 million this year on these elements of the household benefits...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Jobseeker's Allowance Payments (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: As per response to PQ 8884-17, payment of jobseeker’s allowance was suspended when the person concerned declared means from self-employment to an officer of the Department which when combined with means from insurable employment resulted in her weekly means exceeding the prescribed limit. Following representations in the present PQ, a further meeting was arranged with the person...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Supplementary Welfare Allowance Applications (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Basic supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) has been refused on the grounds that the person concerned has failed to supply adequate supporting documentation to show that her means are less than the prescribed SWA rate appropriate to her circumstances. I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The person concerned is in receipt of a diet supplement along with her primary social welfare payment. As a result of an increase in the rate of her primary payment she was notified that her diet supplement would be reduced by the same amount with effect from the 16thMarch. However, legislative provision has since been made so that this will not happen for persons in such circumstances and...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Rent Supplement Scheme Payments (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The client concerned has a daughter who has a pending claim that is considered assessable income for the purposes of the client's rent supplement entitlement. Should that claim not be awarded before the 31st of March, the Department will award the clients rent supplement based solely on the client's income. A re-assessment can subsequently be carried once the claim award rate is known. ...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Carer's Benefit Data (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Credited contributions are automatically awarded to a person when they are receiving Carer's Benefit. Credits are awarded at the same rate as the last paid PRSI contribution. These credits help protect future entitlement to social welfare benefits and pensions. The person concerned was in receipt of carer's benefit from 20 November 2014 to 16 November 2016 and has been awarded credits for...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Social Welfare Offices (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: My Department is working towards consolidation on a single ICT ‘platform’ - the Business Object Model implementation - BOMi. This work is carried out as part of my Department’s continuous Service Delivery Modernisation programme. As this programme progresses, all of my Department’s customer and claim-related systems will be integrated on the BOMi platform,...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Supplementary Welfare Allowance (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Under the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, the Department may make a single exceptional needs payment (ENP) to help meet essential, once-off and unforeseen expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. The Government has provided €31.5 million for exceptional and urgent needs payments in 2017. There is no automatic...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Pension Provisions (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2011 provided that State pension age will be increased gradually to 68 years. This began in January 2014 with the abolition of the State pension (transition) available from 65 for those who satisfied the qualifying conditions, thereby standardising State pension age for all at 66 years, which is the current State pension age. This will increase to 67 in...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Mortgage Arrears Proposals (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Abhaile service for borrowers in home mortgage arrears was officially launched in October 2016. An information campaign to raise awareness of the range of valuable supports now in place for borrowers in home mortgage arrears commenced last month. A key component of the service is a new voucher based scheme for which MABS is the gateway. This provides access for people who are...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Legislative Measures (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Community Employment (CE) is a non-statutory scheme put in place to support persons who are long-term unemployed and other vulnerable groups to gain the confidence and skills to re-enter the labour market. Schemes are sponsored by local community and voluntary groups who provide valuable support services to local communities. These sponsoring organisations employ supervisory staff to...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: JobPath Scheme (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Participants on JobPath receive intensive individual support to help them to overcome barriers to employment and to assist them in finding jobs and when they find employment they will continue to receive support calls from their personal advisor for at least three months and up to twelve months while in employment and will not be required to attend any meetings during that time. The support...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Youth Guarantee (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Government policy to reduce unemployment is twofold. First, through policies set out in the Action Plan for Jobs, to create an environment in which business can succeed and create jobs; and second, through Pathways to Work to ensure that as many of these new jobs and other vacancies that arise in our economy are filled by people taken from the Live Register, including young people. This...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Illness Benefit Eligibility (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The social welfare system is primarily a contingency-based income support system, with entitlement based on a number of defined contingencies such as sickness, unemployment, old age or widowhood. The income support system is underpinned by a general principle of ‘one person, one payment’ even if a person may experience more than one contingency at the same time. For example,...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Citizen Information Services (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Citizens Information Board (CIB), which has statutory responsibility for the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) and the Citizens Information Services (CIS) decided, on 15th February 2017, to restructure the governance arrangements of these services. The Citizens Information Board (CIB) assures me that there will be no job losses, no closure of services, no change to service...

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes Administration (21 Mar 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Department of Social Protection is the funder of Community Employment (CE) schemes. CE Sponsors are the legal employers of CE Supervisors. Each application by a CE Sponsor for supervisory grant support is examined on a case-by-case basis. Where a CE scheme maintains an approval level of 26 or more participants, additional supervisory grant support may be considered for an assistant...