Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Question 415: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if the situation will be changed whereby lone parents participating in community education initiatives have their training allowance, above a €60 disregard, assessed for rent supplement thus completely negating the recent €10 increase in training allowance, just under one third of the entire training allowance being taken off their rent supplement. [5370/06]

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Question 416: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if lone parents participating in community education initiatives will be allowed to retain all of their supplementary benefits. [5371/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 415 and 416 together.

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. My Department does not have 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.

The regulations governing rent supplement stipulate that in addition to the minimum contribution, recipients are also required to contribute towards their rent any additional assessable means that they have over and above the appropriate basic supplementary welfare allowance rate. The assessment of additional income of participants on a training course has always been a feature of the SWA scheme.

The Department is very conscious of the need to facilitate persons in receipt of social welfare payments to take up employment and training opportunities and to ensure that the social welfare supports are structured to support this objective.

A number of measures have been introduced in recent years to remove disincentives to taking up employment and training opportunities and to assist in the transition from welfare to work. These measures include easing of means tests through income disregards and the tapered withdrawal of benefits as earnings increase.

Budget 2006 provided for an increase in the additional income disregards applicable to a person in part-time employment, and participants on certain employment and training courses. Where a person has an additional income as a result of participation on a training course the means test now provides for a weekly disregard of up to €60 per week plus an additional disregard of half of any additional income between €60 and €90.

The measure in budget 2006 to disregard half of any additional income between €60 and €90 is worth €15 per week to a person on one-parent family payment who has a full training allowance and for that reason, the €10 increase in training allowances referred to by the Deputy is not in fact negated. For those participating in approved training courses, any lunch or travel allowances that are paid may also be disregarded.

In addition, certain training courses now provide a child care allowance to participants on certain courses. Budget 2006 provided that these child care allowances are to be treated in the same manner as a lunch or travel allowance and disregarded.

Overall, I consider that the current rent supplement additional income disregards ensure that people have a financial incentive to take up training opportunities, and the position is being kept under continuous review.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Question 417: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if financial assistance will be approved in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny. [5436/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Under the terms of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, the Health Service Executive may make a single payment, known as an exceptional needs payment, ENP, to help meet essential, once-off, exceptional expenditure, which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of his or her weekly income. Eligible people would normally be in receipt of a social welfare or Health Service Executive payment.

Exceptional needs payments are not issued in individual cases on an ongoing basis. They are issued at the discretion of the Health Service Executive and my Department does not have any function in deciding entitlement in individual cases.

The south-eastern area of the Health Service Executive has advised that the person concerned applied last Wednesday, 8 February 2006, for an exceptional needs payment to replace clothes and furniture that were damaged following an accident in his home.

The community welfare officer visited the person concerned on the following day, Thursday, 9 February 2006, and has advised that a decision will be made in the next few days and the person concerned will be informed of the outcome.

John Deasy (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 418: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the full range of entitlements available to refugees and asylum seekers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5438/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Since April 2000 the needs of asylum seekers are catered for under the direct provision system operated by the reception and integration agency of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Under the system asylum seekers are provided with full board accommodation and other facilities such as laundry services and access to leisure areas. To take account of the services provided, a direct provision allowance of €19.10 per adult per week and €9.60 per child per week is payable in respect of any personal requisites required.

Following the introduction of the statutory habitual residency condition in May 2004, asylum seekers are generally not entitled to receive social welfare support. Since then, the payment of this weekly direct provision allowance is being made on an administrative basis by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive on behalf on the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

This is an interim measure pending finalisation of arrangements by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to integrate payment of an allowance with its management of accommodation and related services for asylum seekers. It continues to be open to any asylum seeker to seek assistance for a particular once-off need by way of an exceptional needs payment under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme.

In addition, a small number of asylum seekers are in receipt of other social welfare payments such as unemployment payments, one-parent family payments, pensions, disability allowance and child benefit. These payments were authorised prior to the introduction of the habitual residency condition.

Refugees, that is people whose claim for asylum is successful, are entitled to assistance under the social welfare system on the same basis as Irish citizens. For example, they can seek employment but if they are unable to secure employment they will qualify for unemployment assistance if they fulfil the standard conditions of being available for, capable of and genuinely seeking work and if their means are below the qualifying limit. Similarly, they may qualify for other supports, such as one-parent family payment or unemployment assistance subject to the same conditions that apply to all other applicants for these payments.

Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 419: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the fact that former Irish Ferries employees are having to wait eight to 12 weeks before they receive their entitlements as their redundancy is being classed as voluntary in view of the circumstances surrounding the Irish Ferries dispute; and if this is justifiable. [5439/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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I understand that the Deputy is referring to the disqualification period that applies on an unemployment benefit claim when a person receives a redundancy payment.

Under social welfare legislation a person under the age of 55 who receives a redundancy payment in excess of €19,046.07, may be disqualified for receiving unemployment benefit for a period of up to nine weeks from the last date of employment. This period of disqualification is determined by the amount of the redundancy payment and applies regardless of whether the redundancy is voluntary or involuntary. In practise, a disqualification for one week applies where the redundancy payment is between €19,046.07 and €25,400 and the full nine-week disqualification applies where the amount of the redundancy payment exceeds €69,850.

This amount includes the gross amount of all payments in respect of the redundancy, for example, statutory redundancy, top-up or ex gratia payments related to weeks of service, early encashment of pension entitlements, if from employer's funds, and any other money received under an agreement with the employer.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Question 420: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if rent allowance will be approved in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kilkenny. [5494/06]

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. My Department does not have any function in relation to decisions on individual claims.

The community welfare division of the Health Service Executive has advised that it has no record of an application for rent supplement from the person concerned. If he wishes to apply for a rent supplement he should contact the community welfare officer at his local health centre for an assessment of his eligibility.

John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Question 421: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if the case of a person (details supplied) in County Carlow will be reviewed; and if arrangements will be made to grant rent allowance in the case. [5664/06]

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. My Department does not have any function in relation to decisions on individual claims.

The executive has advised that it recently reviewed the rent supplement claim of the person concerned and it has decided to increase the rate of supplement payable. It has informed the person concerned of this decision and advised the person to contact the community welfare officer in the event of any change in his personal circumstances.