Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 426: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the concerns of a group (details supplied) in regard to recent Central Statistics Office figures and the effect that recent budgetary decisions are having on their job opportunities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6330/06]

Jerry Cowley (Mayo, Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 435: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason his Department has decided to impose an assessment on rent supplement for young single mothers participating in the Moving On programme for young mothers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6536/06]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 439: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason young mothers participating in community education initiatives, in particular a community education initiative in Carlow (details supplied), which are aimed at improving the educational qualifications of young mothers and supporting them in progressing from welfare dependency to sustainable employment, are having the training allowance they receive assessed as means for the purpose of secondary benefits; the reason this move will encourage this vulnerable group, many of whom only have a primary level education and who are three times more at risk of poverty than the rest of the population to participate in the initiative; if this change in assessment is in contradiction of Statutory Instrument Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 1995 Section 7 (ii)(III). [6693/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 426, 435 and 439 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. Neither I nor the Department of Social and Family Affairs has any function in decisions on individual claims. Rent supplements are paid subject to a means test. Rent supplements are ordinarily 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. However, people who take up certain opportunities, such as a place in the Moving On programme, are treated more favourably and may retain up to €75 per week of any additional income they receive. The recent budget improved their position. From January 2006, a weekly disregard of up to €60 per week is allowed and half of any additional income between €60 and €90 is also disregarded. Prior to the budget, there was no disregard of income above €60 per week. This type of additional income disregard was first introduced in budget 2000 and has been increased over the years to its current level.

Lone parents who participate in the Moving On programme are not penalised for doing so. For example, a lone parent with one child living in Carlow with rent of €150 per week, whose sole income is a one-parent family payment of €185.10 per week, would ordinarily receive rent supplement of €134.50 per week, resulting in a net after-rent income of €169.60 week. If she takes up a place in the Moving On programme her total income before rent supplement and before paying rent would rise to €280.10 per week. In these circumstances, she would be entitled to €114.50 in rent supplement and her income after paying rent would be €244.60 per week. She would be €75 better off for having participating in the Moving On programme. I understand that up to September 2005, the rules of the scheme were not being applied correctly in some instances. However, participants in the Moving On programme have their income assessed correctly in the same manner as any other participant on a FÁS training course.

Supplementary welfare allowance, including rent supplement, is not payable to students. The purpose of the regulations to which the Deputy refers is to ensure that people participating in initiatives such as the Moving On programme are not prevented from receiving rent supplement on these grounds. However, the standard means test still applies. Deputies will appreciate that it would be anomalous if no means test was applied in such cases. The means test described above is used to determine the rate of supplementary welfare allowance payable and is not in conflict with the regulations to which the Deputy refers. The Central Statistics Office statistics referred to are those arising from the EU survey on income and living conditions. This is an annual survey that provides information on poverty, deprivation and social exclusion. The survey commenced in Ireland in June 2003. The latest survey results, announced in December 2005, and reporting on 2004, are encouraging as they show that the greatly increased resources being devoted to social welfare and other social services are having a positive impact on poverty and social exclusion.

Results for the first two years of the EU survey, 2003 and 2004, show there has been a slight decrease in the percentage of persons at risk of poverty, based on the proportion of the population below an income threshold of 60% of median income, from 19.7% in 2003 to 19.4% in 2004. These figures represent a halting of the upward trend of previous years in the numbers in the broad category of being at risk of poverty. This is a particularly encouraging outcome from the survey. The results show a significant reduction in the consistent poverty rate from 8.8% in 2003 to 6.8% in 2004. The consistent poverty measure is used in this country to identify those experiencing basic deprivation. It is calculated by identifying people at risk of poverty — people with incomes below the 60% threshold — who are deprived of basic goods and services regarded as essential for living in Ireland today. An examination of the breakdown of the above figures shows that lone parent families experience the highest rates of being at risk of poverty and encountering consistent poverty — 48.3% and 31.1% respectively. While these figures represent a slight reduction on the survey results for 2003, they are still significantly higher than the average.

The national action plan against poverty and social exclusion represents the Government's main response to the problems of poverty and exclusion which are experienced by the most vulnerable groups, including lone parent families. It is generally accepted that for all people in working age households, the main route out of poverty is through employment. However, employment participation among lone parents in this country is among the lowest in the OECD. This is despite a number of developments, including huge employment growth in recent years, increased female participation in the workforce and the income disregards afforded to lone parents who take up employment under the Department's one-parent family payment. One of the key tasks in the ending child poverty initiative under Sustaining Progress is to address the obstacles to employment for lone parents. As part of this work, a group was established in the Department to review the income support arrangements for lone parents. The Cabinet has approved the group's report, which will be published in the near future. It will be followed by a consultation process involving groups representing lone parent interests. It is my intention that the outcome of this review, together with initiatives already in place in the Department, will contribute to the development of proposals designed to better support and encourage lone parents and those seeking work in achieving a better standard of living, employment and education opportunities, a better future for themselves and their children and a more appropriate social policy in the future.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 427: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his attention has been drawn to the fact that persons who have been on sickness benefit for a period of years, who unsuccessfully seek to return to work, can be severely penalised by losing all entitlement to sickness benefit when they return to make a claim whereas if they had never sought to go back to work, they could have continued to receive sickness benefit indefinitely; if he will review this provision as it was never intended by the Houses of the Oireachtas that people who make a genuine attempt to become active again after a long period of illness should be penalised in this way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6307/06]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Disability benefit is a social insurance payment made to people who are unable to work due to illness. To satisfy the PRSI contribution conditions and to underpin the contributory principle underlying the social insurance system, a person must have paid 52 contributions since entry into insurable employment, with 39 contributions paid or credited in the relevant contribution year and 13 contributions paid in a recent tax or contribution year. Alternatively, a person may have 26 contributions paid in the relevant income tax or contribution year and 26 contributions paid in the tax or contribution year prior to the relevant income tax or contribution year. Facilitating a return to work or participation in the active labour force is one of the main objectives of the social welfare system. There are a number of measures in place to provide people in receipt of disability benefit with supports to avail of employment as well as some fall-back measures if a return to work is not successful. In this regard, exemptions are available from the general "no work" conditions of the disability benefit scheme to allow people to take up rehabilitative employment, training or development opportunities. The exemptions are granted on the advice of the Department's medical assessors for a period of 12 months, but may be renewed for a further period, subject to review, if a person seeks an extension. Payment of disability benefit is retained in full while a person is availing of such exemptions.

Access to the back to work allowance scheme is available to persons who have been in receipt of disability benefit for a period of three years and provides tapered support for the first three years of employment, or four years in the case of self-employment. There are special administrative arrangements which allow a person in receipt of back to work allowance to qualify for his or her original rate of disability benefit if his or her attempts to return to employment are unsuccessful. If a person has been in receipt of disability benefit for five years or more and has a break in his or her claim of not more than 13 weeks, he or she can re-qualify for disability benefit at the same rate as that prior to the break in claim. If a break in the claim exceeds a period of 13 weeks, the person may be entitled to a reduced rate of disability benefit if he or she has to return to benefit as a result of illness. The means-tested disability allowance scheme is also available to people who are substantially restricted in undertaking employment because of illness or disability and do not have the relevant social insurance record. A recent review of the Department's illness and disability schemes recommended that a range of employment supports should be put in place for different groups, ensuring that clients are referred to the most suitable option, having regard to the nature of their illness or disability, age and social circumstances. The review sets out a strategic direction for policy development and its many recommendations are being examined in the Department, including those on strengthening employment supports. If the Deputy wishes to obtain further information on a particular case or situation, the Department will be happy to provide a response.