Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 326: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the rationale behind not paying a qualified adult allowance to spouses of a person receiving carer's benefit where the spouse does not qualify for any other payment in their own right. [35517/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Supporting and recognising carers in our society is and has been a priority of the Government since 1997. Over that period, weekly payment rates to carers have been greatly increased, qualifying conditions for carer's allowance have been significantly eased, coverage of the scheme has been extended and new schemes such as carer's benefit and the respite care grant have been introduced and extended.

Carer's benefit is a weekly income support payment intended to support people who leave the workforce temporarily to care for someone who is in need of full-time care and attention.

A qualified adult allowance is not payable with carers benefit or allowance scheme. The possibility of paying a qualified adult allowance with these schemes has been considered. However, in the majority of cases if the carer's spouse is the care recipient he/she will be in receipt of a social welfare payment in his/her own right. A number of other carers spouses are in employment. Supplementary welfare allowance is available, subject to a means test, to meet the income support needs of the small number of people who fall outside of these groups.

I will keep the supports for carers available from my Department under review in order to continue to improve the schemes and ensure that commitments in relation to income support are delivered.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 327: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason the back to school allowance is paid in respect of children under the age of four; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35533/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The back to school clothing and footwear allowance (BSCFA) scheme provides a one-off payment to eligible families to assist with the extra costs when their children start school each autumn.

The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme was introduced in 1990. This scheme superseded the arrangements which had been in place since 1977 whereby child clothing and footwear payments were made under the exceptional needs provisions of the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme. The Supplementary Welfare Allowance clothing and footwear scheme had in turn replaced a previous Public Assistance Footwear scheme that had been introduced in 1944. These previous schemes had been targeted at both school and pre-school children from the age of two years up. When the BSCFA scheme was introduced, the provision to pay the allowance to children from the age of two years up was retained.

A person may qualify for payment of an allowance if they are in receipt of a social welfare or Health Service Executive (HSE) payment, or are participating in an approved employment scheme or attending a recognise d education and training course and have household income at below standard levels.

The 2007 rates for BSCFA are €180 for children aged 2 to 11 years and €285 for children aged 12 to 22. Budget 2008 has increased these rates by €20 to €200 and €305, respectively. I consider the back to school clothing and footwear allowance scheme to be an important support for parents at a time of particular financial strain.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 328: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will request the assistance of the Revenue Commissioners in identifying low paid families who would potentially be eligible for the family income supplement, but do not currently pay it; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35534/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Family income supplement is the principal in-work income support for people in low-income employment. It is designed to provide an incentive to people with children, to remain in, or take up, employment rather than be fully welfare dependent. To qualify for payment, family income must be below the threshold applicable to the family size, which varies according to the number of qualified child dependants.

The number of families who are eligible for FIS is not directly comparable with income statistics compiled by the Revenue Commissioners for a number of reasons. Revenue data does not, generally speaking, take into account the number of hours worked, the number of children in a family, nor social welfare income which might not be taxed but would be taken into account for FIS. Also, the information held by the Revenue Commissioners is out of date, generally by at least a year and does not take into account all the current circumstances that a person may find themselves in.

The issue of paying FIS through the tax system was considered by a group set up under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness and chaired by the Department of Finance. The Group concluded that FIS should continue to be paid through the social welfare system.

On the question of FIS take up, my department is undertaking a project which it hopes to complete in mid 2008, to provide an indication of current take up levels. The project will also include an analysis of the reasons and factors why persons who appear to have an entitlement to FIS have not taken up their entitlement or availed of this employment support; to identify what barriers, in terms of access to eligibility, may exist; where such barriers exist how they can be mitigated or removed; to assess whether alternative mechanisms to enhance take up of FIS can be implemented; and ultimately to improve customer service and access to family income supplement eligibility for low income families.

Given the radical developments in the economy and labour force in recent years, and in view of the changed FIS landscape, no conclusive judgement can be made regarding current FIS take-up levels until this issue has been comprehensively re-examined. In this context it should be noted that, since the end of 2004, FIS claim volume has increased by almost 50% and expenditure by over 90%.