Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yes.

I move amendment No. 33:

In page 14, after line 7, to insert the following:

“10. The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection shall, within three months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay a report before the Houses of the Oireachtas examining potential improvements to voluntary access to Intreo and Local Employment Service (LES) employment, training and educational opportunities and supports for those not on the Live Register.”.

This amendment deals with voluntary access to Intreo and local employment service training and educational opportunities and supports for those not on the live register and those who are not necessarily on a jobseeker's payment or on the live register. For example, I refer to those who may or may not fall under the qualified adult category; they may be persons who are thinking about re-entering the workplace after a long period of providing care. They may not qualify for the live register in certain circumstances because they have not fulfilled a habitual residency condition as yet but they wish to access casework and support in terms of employment training and educational opportunities. The amendment seeks to ensure the very large cohort who are not employed or who are underemployed and are interested in seeing what the options may be would have greater voluntary access. I have been told at times that anybody can walk into an Intreo office and the services are available there. I have also been told there have been periods of prioritisation an so forth in which persons who are not required, as a condition of their payment, to seek employment supports have not effectively been able to access supports because the emphasis has been on those who have a requirement placed on them. This amendment deals with voluntary access and seeks to ensure that as many people as possible access opportunities.