Bernard Allen (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 105: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason a person (details supplied) in County Cork has had her rent supplement terminated. [16751/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Rent supplements are provided through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive.

The southern area of the executive has advised that, as a result of an administrative error, the rent supplement payment due on 5 May 2005 was not issued to the person concerned. The error was rectified by issuing a double payment to her on the next pay date. The executive has further advised that, in the course of a review of her rent supplement entitlement, the person concerned confirmed that there has been an increase in her household income. In addition to her one-parent family payment from my Department, she is receiving family maintenance payments of €120 a week, the first €95.23 of which is regarded as being for housing costs under rent supplement rules. She has been notified by the executive that her revised rent supplement entitlement is €62.20 per week, effective from 23 May 2005.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 106: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the extent to which free travel is available or is likely to be so in respect of eligible persons who live in areas lacking in public transport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16841/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The free travel scheme is available to all people living in the State aged 66 years or over, to all carers in receipt of carer's allowance and to carers of people in receipt of constant attendance or prescribed relative's allowance. It is also available to certain people with disabilities and people who are in receipt of certain welfare type payments.

The scheme provides free travel on the main public and private transport services. These include road, rail and ferry services provided by companies such as Bus Átha Cliath, Bus Éireann and Iarnród Éireann, as well as services provided by over 80 private transport operators. The vast majority of private contractors providing services under the scheme operate in rural areas. The underlying feature of the scheme is the use of spare capacity on these transport services.

I am always willing to consider applications from licensed private transport operators who may wish to participate in the free travel scheme. However, while my Department pays transport providers to operate the free travel scheme, it is not in a position to provide transport services where none exist.

The issue of access to public transport in rural areas is being addressed through the rural transport initiative, managed by Area Development Management, ADM, on behalf of the Minister for Transport. My Department contributed €500,000 to the initiative in 2004 and I have secured €575,000 for 2005. This will ensure that free travel pass holders continue to have full access to community based transport services.

Seán Ardagh (Dublin South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 107: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if, in his next review of the carer's allowance scheme, he will increase the number of hours a carer can work outside the home to 20 hours a week, particularly in a case in which the person being cared for resides in the same home as the carer. [16734/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The carer's allowance is a social assistance payment that provides income support to people who are providing certain elderly or incapacitated persons with full-time care and attention and whose incomes fall below a certain limit.

From August 1999, the full-time care and attention requirements were relaxed to introduce an element of flexibility for carers, while still safeguarding the needs and interests of care recipients. Under these arrangements, which were introduced in recognition of the economic and therapeutic value of work, carers may work for up to ten hours per week. However, the carer's allowance scheme is designed for full time carers and, accordingly, in allowing for flexibility to work, a balance needs to be struck between the needs of the care recipient and needs of the carer to maintain contact with the labour market.

Government policy is strongly in favour of supporting care in the community and enabling people to remain in their own homes for as long as possible. The types of services that recognise the value of the caring ethos and which provide real support and practical assistance to the people involved will continue to be developed. All allowances and systems of support and the qualifying conditions will be kept under review.

Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 108: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the concerns of persons in receipt of rent subsidy (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16801/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The concerns to which the Deputy refers relate to the treatment of maintenance payments. Half of any maintenance a lone parent receives can be disregarded as means for the purposes of assessing his or her entitlement to one-parent family payment. The means test for this and certain other social assistance schemes also provides for a disregard of up to € 95.23 per week of maintenance payments in instances where applicants have rent or mortgage interest obligations on their family homes.

The means test for the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, through which rent supplements are provided, requires that all types of household income, including maintenance payments for the lone parent and his or her children, must be taken into account in determining a person's entitlements under the scheme.

Given that up to €95.23 per week of maintenance payments has already been disregarded in the means test for primary scheme payment purposes to allow for housing costs, maintenance income up to this weekly amount is assessable in determining the appropriate level of additional rent supplement payable. However, depending on the particular family housing cost, up to €60 per week of maintenance in excess of this €95.23 amount can be disregarded for rent supplement means assessment purposes, to ensure that the family has the benefit of the extra maintenance income up to that level before it affects their rent supplement entitlements.

Overall, the means test rules and disregards are designed to give an incentive to lone parents to obtain maintenance to improve their household income position, while ensuring that families in that situation have access to appropriate levels of rent or mortgage interest supplement to be able to continue to meet their accommodation needs.