Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

We pay 2 million people a week and therefore the numbers we are dealing with are huge. It is fair to say that there has been a huge increase in the customer base, so to speak, in recent years but the Senator can rest assured that both I and the Department are focused on delivery. Part of this Bill, for example, deals with the delays in appeals, which we will come to again, but I also believe we must examine a range of ways of streamlining the delivery of the service to the person on the ground and, if necessary, simplifying schemes to ensure there is less work involved.

One of the major delays involves means testing. Anything that must be means tested requires a great deal of homework. It is sometimes difficult to get applicants to give details but if we activate people, the means test is not as critical because they are either eligible for the payment or they are not and they get the full payment if they are working.

We must examine a range of ways of speeding up the processing of these lists. The Department is doing a great deal in that direction and I have no problem in giving updates at any stage, and not only on the local areas. I believe that was done previously in terms of the length of time it takes to process jobseeker's benefit and jobseeker's allowance in every local office. The Senator can rest assured that I will be giving updates and that I am focusing on this issue. Our determination is that we have efficient procedures in place.

I wrote to all Senators some time ago regarding representations made to me by public representatives. I felt at that stage that unless they were still outstanding, giving answers for January, February, March and April was a waste of time. If the client had found out the information in February, there was not much point in telling the Senators in June. I thank the Senators for the spirit in which that was received. Unless Senators come back to us with an outstanding query, we are taking those as read. The reason I did that was to try to give answers more quickly to the recent queries to ensure backlogs do not develop in terms of queries and that Senators do not get answers to queries three months after their constituents get them. The departmental officials have been very helpful in that regard. We hope constantly to improve the quality of service to ensure we not only have good policy but good delivery as well.