Mary O'Rourke (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 542: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if she will review the case of a person (details supplied) in County Westmeath. [27118/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Rent supplement is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive (HSE) as part of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme.

The purpose of the rent supplement 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.

Rent supplement is calculated to ensure that a person, after the payment of rent, has an income equal to the basic rate of supplementary welfare allowance, appropriate to his/her family circumstances, less a specified minimum contribution, currently €13, which recipients are required to pay from their own resources. Many recipients pay more than €13 towards their accommodation costs because recipients are also required to contribute any additional assessable means, including income from employment, other social welfare and maintenance payments that they have, over and above the appropriate rate of supplementary welfare allowance.

The HSE has advised that the person concerned is in receipt of her full entitlement to rent supplement when account is taken of income she has from One-Parent Family payment, Jobseekers Benefit and maintenance payments.

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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Question 543: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if a person (details supplied) in Dublin 17 will be assisted. [27147/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Health Service Executive (HSE) has advised that there is no record of an application for rent supplement or an exceptional needs payment from the person concerned. If he wishes to make an application for rent supplement or an exceptional needs payment he should apply to the community welfare officer at his local health centre.