Results 1-20 of 20,965 for speaker:Heather Humphreys in 'Written Answers'

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Community Development Projects (11 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 463 and 464 together. The CLÁR Programme provides funding under a number of different measures for small-scale infrastructural projects in designated rural areas. Maps showing the areas of Meath and Westmeath which are designated for CLÁR are available on my Department’s website, along with a document listing all the CLÁR DEDs per...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Capital Expenditure Programme (11 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 465 and 466 together. The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) supports improving rural roads and laneways not usually maintained by local authorities. As part of Our Rural Future, the Government is committed to ensuring that LIS is funded into the future. I have attached, as requested a breakdown of allocations versus actual spend per county from 2018 - 2023....

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Road Projects (11 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 467 and 469 together. The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS) supports improving rural roads and laneways not usually maintained by local authorities. As part of Our Rural Future, the Government is committed to ensuring that the LIS is funded into the future. While my department provides funding for the scheme, it is administered by each local authority, who...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Road Projects (11 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Local Improvement Scheme (LIS), funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development, helps local authorities improve small roads and laneways in rural areas not normally maintained by local authorities. Eligible road projects are those that involve the construction or improvement of non-public roads as follows: to parcels of land, of which two or more are owned or occupied by...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Local Authorities (11 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: In 2022, I launched the Town Centre First Policy which is a major cross-government policy that aims to tackle vacancy, combat dereliction and breathe new life into our town centres. It supports the Our Rural Future vision for a thriving rural Ireland. Central to the Town Centre First approach is the range of capital support funding in place, including my Department’s Rural Regeneration...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Insurance (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: It is not possible to provide the information requested by the Deputy. My Department is unable to identify the number of craft apprentices currently in employment in order to estimate any additional PRSI yield that would be generated from applying the National Minimum Wage to the earnings of those contributors.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Money Advice and Budgeting Service (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: As you will be aware, the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS), funded by the Citizens Information Board (CIB), a statutory body under the aegis of my Department, is the State’s money advice service. MABS provides free advice and support to people on debt and money management issues, in particular those on low income or dependent on social welfare supports. MABS also...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Living Alone Increase is a weekly payment, which is not means tested. The Living Alone Increase is an additional payment made each week to persons who live alone and are in receipt of certain Social Protection payments. These payments include over 66 recipients of State Pension (Contributory), State Pension (Non-contributory), Widow’s, Widower’s, or Surviving Civil...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is a payment of €33 per week for 28 weeks (a total of €924 each year) from late September to April, at an estimated cost of €382 million in 2024. The purpose of this payment is to assist these households with their energy costs. Only one allowance is paid per household. At the end of December 2023, 411,395 household were in receipt of the Fuel...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Staff (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The number of actuaries at Assistant Principal grade in the Department of Social Protection is set out below. At year end 2022 At year end 2023 At end June 2024 1 1 0 Recruitment for an Assistant Principal(AP) actuary is currently underway, as is a competition for graduates interested in pursuing a professional actuarial...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 161 and 169 together. Under the law as currently enacted, entitlement to a Widows, Widowers or Surviving Civil Partner’s Contributory pension is only available to a surviving partner who was party to a marriage or civil partnership. On Monday 22nd January, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment in relation to the entitlement of an unmarried...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (10 Jul 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 an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 19...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (10 Jul 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 there is no record of any appeal by the person concerned having been...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Government acknowledges the valuable 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 include Carer's Allowance, Carer's Benefit, Domiciliary Care Allowance, and the Carer's Support...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: This Government acknowledges the important role that carers play and is fully committed to supporting them in that role. Accordingly, once a person has met the minimum requirement of 520 paid contributions, the current State Pension (Contributory) system provides measures including PRSI credits, Homemaking Disregards and HomeCaring Periods to recognise caring periods of up to 20 years outside...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (10 Jul 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 an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 20...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Eligibility (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Disability Allowance (DA) is a weekly allowance paid to people with a specified disability who are aged 16 or over and under the age of 66. This disability must be expected to last for at least one year and the allowance is subject to a medical assessment, means test and habitual residency conditions. I confirm that my Department received an application for DA from the person concerned on...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: State pension non-contributory is a means-tested payment for people aged 66 and over, habitually residing in the State, who do not qualify for a state pension contributory, or who only qualify for a reduced rate contributory pension based on their social insurance record. An application for state pension non-contributory was received from the person concerned on 1 July 2024. State...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, my Department may make Additional Needs Payments to help meet essential expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income. This is an overarching term used to refer to exceptional and urgent needs payments, and certain supplements to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from the customer’s own resources,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Covid-19 Pandemic (10 Jul 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived supports EU countries’ actions to provide material assistance (including food and clothing) to the most deprived. As part of the Fund for the European Aid to most Deprived (FEAD), a claim was made by the Department of Social Protection for Personal Protection Equipment in respect of the of the delivery of the FEAD programme during the...