Results 161-180 of 2,197 for long speaker:Heather Humphreys

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (12 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...doing transition year, there has been an increase in the number of 18-year-olds still in secondary education. I believe the extension of Child Benefit to 18-year-olds in full-time education is a long-term change for the better and will support families across Ireland into the future. This is a significant change to the Child Benefit scheme, which will require technical and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Policies (12 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...Child (to be paid per qualified child). Recently I announced changes to the State Pension (Contributory) that are being introduced in January 2024. These changes include improved access to state pensions provision for long-term carers. These changes will see carers receive the equivalent of paid contributions for caring periods of over 20 years to cover gaps in their contribution record...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (12 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...satisfy the pay-related social insurance contribution conditions. Illness Benefit is paid for a maximum of two years and is classified as a short-term scheme. A Christmas Bonus will be paid to long-term Illness benefit customers in the week commencing 4th December. For the purposes of this bonus, long term is classified as those who have accumulated 306 paid days by Sunday 26th November...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Priorities (12 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...first half of next year. The consultation period for the Green Paper on Disability Payments reform has been extended. This Green Paper is not a final reform design. It is a proposal on what the future of long-term disability payments could look like. It does not claim to be the best way or the only way to change the structure of our payments.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (12 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...Increase for a Qualified Child (to be paid per qualified child). Recently I announced changes to the State Pension (Contributory) that are being introduced in January 2024. These changes include improved access to state pensions provision for long-term carers. These changes will see carers receive the equivalent of paid contributions for caring periods of over 20 years to cover gaps...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (12 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...Report and to take account of the recommendations in the Cost of Disability Report. The Roadmap for Social Inclusion commitment was to develop and consult on a proposal for the restructuring of long-term disability payments. The main proposal of the Green Paper is to move to a three-tiered Personal Support Payment, rather than the one-size-fits-all payments we currently have. ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: .... In September 2022, following detailed examination and consideration of the Commission’s Report the Government published its response. A key feature was improved access to the State pension for long-term carers. Since September 2023, Long-Term Carers have been able to apply for Long Term Carers Contributions. These contributions are reckonable for State Pension Contributory...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...with disabilities, which will improve their outcomes; and secondly, to better insulate disabled people who cannot work from poverty and deprivation. The Paper’s key proposal is to introduce a new long-term disability payment that has three tiers of payment with associated employment supports. This takes into consideration the recommendations of the Cost of Disability report,...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...of enhanced State Pension provision for people who have been caring for incapacitated dependents for 20 years or more. It will do this by attributing the equivalent of paid contributions to such long-term carers to cover gaps in their contribution record for the periods that they were caring for an incapacitated dependent. The measure will be available to individuals who reach State...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...pupils doing transition year, there has been an increase in the number of 18-year-olds still in secondary education. I believe the extension of Child Benefit to 18-year-olds in full-time education is a long-term change for the better and will support families across Ireland into the future. This is a significant change to the Child Benefit scheme which will require technical and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Consultations (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: I propose to take Questions Nos. 113, 121 and 149 together. The Government committed as part of the Roadmap for Social Inclusion to develop and consult on proposals to restructure long-term disability payments and to simplify the system. The proposals developed are set out in the Green Paper on Disability Reform. This was published on 20 September and marked the start of the...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Code (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ..., would cost an additional €130 million each year. I would like to emphasise that the Green Paper is not a final design. It is only a starting point for a structured discussion on what the future of long-term disability payments could look like. It offers one possible approach on how to target limited resources - its proposals are intended to invite discussion, debate and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...pension in exactly the same way as they can today. In addition, from January 2024, there will be new flexibility for those reaching State Pension age, so that people may choose to defer their pension, work longer, build contributions and receive a higher pension payment, if they wish. The flexible State Pension system is about providing people with choice. People will decide for...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Benefits (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...two payments, care and disability, and the recipient of the payment are different it is not possible to have a seamless transition between the two payments. I am committed to restructuring long-term disability payments and to simplify the social welfare system to make it work better for people with disabilities. On 20 September, I published a Green Paper on Disability Reform and...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Employment Schemes (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...qualifying conditions for both schemes are that a person must be available for and genuinely seeking full-time work. The Part-Time Job Incentive Scheme (PTJI) is available to people who are long-term unemployed to take up part-time employment for less than 24 hours per week and receive a weekly income supplement. The scheme is generally awarded for one year but may be extended for up...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: State Pensions (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...foster carer is not in receipt of Child Benefit, they can still qualify for Homemaker’s Scheme or HomeCaring Periods provided the caring periods are confirmed by Tusla. Despite these measures, some long-term carers of incapacitated dependents may still face barriers in accessing the State Pension (Contributory). They may for example have difficulty establishing the minimum number...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...respect of whom an Increase for a Qualified Child is in paymentThis week will see two further lump sum payments being made:A double payment of Child BenefitA 100% Christmas BonusAnd in January, a 100% double payment, at higher weekly rates, will be made to recipients of long term social protection payments. The ESRI analysis shows that Budget 2024 rate increases, combined with the cost of...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Payments (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: ...schemes, which are payable from Wednesday to Tuesday in the case of Jobseeker's Allowance, and from Thursday to Wednesday for Jobseeker's Benefit. The payment dates on social welfare schemes are long established and when originally introduced, took into account factors such as staggering attendances at Social Welfare offices and Post Offices on particular days. This minimises queuing...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance scheme is a means-tested payment to assist pensioners and other long-term social welfare dependent householders with their winter heating costs. The payment is made over the winter season - from September to April - at the weekly rate of €33 or, if preferred, by way of two lump sum instalments - one in September and one in January. Only one Fuel Allowance is...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Data (7 Dec 2023)

Heather Humphreys: The Fuel Allowance is a means-tested payment to assist pensioners and other long-term social welfare dependent householders with their winter heating costs. The payment is a contribution towards heating costs; it is not intended to meet these costs in full. The payment is made over the winter season - from September to April - at the weekly rate of €33 or, if preferred, by way of two...