Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 312: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs when rent allowance payment and arrears will be granted in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8571/09]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Rent supplement is administered on behalf of the department by the Health Service Executive as part of the supplementary welfare allowance scheme. The Executive has advised that the person concerned had been in receipt of rent supplement since 1999. One of the conditions for receipt of the supplement is that landlord details must be supplied at the time of application. The person concerned has not disclosed the identity of her landlord over a number of years.

Payment of rent supplement was suspended in November 2008 and she was advised that her entitlement to rent supplement would be re-assessed when she provided details of her landlord. The Executive has advised that the relevant information was received from the person concerned on 26 February 2009. Her entitlement to rent supplement, including arrears of payment, will be assessed as soon as possible.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 313: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if mortgage assistance will be offered in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Laois; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8572/09]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes mortgage interest supplement, is administered on behalf of the department by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive.

Mortgage interest supplement provides short-term support to eligible people who are unable to meet their mortgage interest repayments in respect of a house which is their sole place of residence. The supplement assists with the interest portion of the mortgage repayments only.

The Executive has advised that an application for mortgage interest supplement from the person concerned was refused on the grounds that the amount of mortgage interest payable by him exceeds the amount the Executive considers reasonable to meet his residential and other needs.

It is a legislative requirement of the scheme that the amount of mortgage interest payable by an applicant does not exceed such amount as the Executive considers reasonable to meet his/her residential and other needs. Regulations provide that notwithstanding the limitation on the amount of mortgage interest supplement payable, the Executive may award a supplement where the amount of mortgage interest payable exceeds such amount as is considered reasonable by the Executive. However, where a supplement is paid in such circumstances, it is not payable for any period more than 12 months from the date the claim is made.

In deciding what is a reasonable amount of mortgage interest payable, the Executive may take into account factors such as household composition, family circumstances and the amount of the local maximum statutory rent limits in operation for the rent supplement scheme i.e. €100 a week for a single person in the Laois area.

The Executive has advised that the person concerned appealed against the decision to refuse him mortgage interest supplement to the Health Service Executive Appeals Officer. The Appeals Officer decided that he is not entitled to the payment as the amount of mortgage interest payable by him exceeds such amount as is considered reasonable by the Executive. The person concerned has been advised of his further right of appeal to the Chief Appeals Officer of the Department of Social and Family Affairs.