Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 284: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the reason a person (details supplied) in County Mayo is not allowed to go back on the rural social scheme. [3472/06]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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The conditions of eligibility, which need to be fulfilled in order to participate in the RSS are as follows: applicants must be in receipt of farm assist, or have been allocated a valid herd or flock number from the Department of Agriculture and Food, and be in receipt of one of the following allowances from the Department of Social and Family Affairs, unemployment assistance, unemployment benefit if previously on CE or disability allowance; or applicants are self-employed fisherpersons on a fishing boat which has been entered in the register of fishing boats or have been issued with a fishing licence for fishing for salmon at sea, from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, and are in receipt of one of the following allowances from the Department of Social and Family Affairs — unemployment assistance, unemployment benefit if previously on CE or disability allowance.

The person in question, prior to commencement on this scheme, was signing for credited social insurance contributions, credits, with the Department of Social and Family Affairs. Credited contributions are notional social insurance contributions, which are awarded to an insured person without a PRSI payment being received from the insured person.

My Department has established, following legal advice, that a person signing for credits has no underlying entitlement to participate on the scheme. The person concerned spent one year on the scheme but following the legal clarification was informed that he could not continue to participate for a further period on the basis of credited social insurance contributions. To be eligible for the future, a person must meet the criteria set out above.