Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 350: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the fact that for the first time in nine years participants on the Moving On programme (details supplied) are having their training allowance assessed for rent supplement and that a disregard of €60 is being applied; his plans to change same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4308/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent supplement, is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive. The purpose of the scheme is to provide short-term income support to eligible people living in private rented accommodation whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. Neither I nor my Department has any function in relation to decisions on individual claims.

Under the rules of the scheme, rent supplements are calculated to ensure that an eligible person after the payment of rent has an income equal to the rate of supplementary welfare allowance appropriate to his or her family circumstances, less a minimum contribution of €13 which each recipient is required to pay from his or her own resources. Where a person has an additional income as a result of participation on a FÁS training course, such as the Moving On programme, the means test provides for a weekly disregard of up to €60 per week and for half of any additional income between €60 and €90 to be disregarded for means assessment purposes. This type of additional income disregard was first introduced in budget 2000 and has been increased over the years to its current level. The current arrangements are designed to ensure that people have a financial incentive to take up training opportunities.

Bernard Allen (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 351: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the conditions governing the payment of the disability allowance to persons who leave here; the maximum duration that a person can leave here for personal reasons to visit another part of the European Union without losing their disability allowance. [4386/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Disability allowance is a means-tested social assistance payment which is paid to people with a disability who are substantially handicapped in undertaking work which would otherwise be suitable for a person of their age, experience and qualifications.

The right of a person to retain a social security payment when moving to another member state is governed by national legislation and EU social security regulations. While social insurance based payments can be paid when a person moves to another member state, payments which are classified by EU regulations as being "special non-contributory benefits" are not generally payable outside the State.

For the purposes of the EU social security regulations, disability allowance is classified as a special non-contributory benefit and accordingly is not payable outside Ireland. The only exception to this is in circumstances where the person is receiving medical treatment in a hospital abroad, in which case payment of disability allowance may continue for the duration of such treatment.