Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 241: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the rules for tapered withdrawal of rent supplement or mortgage interest supplement where a person returns to work under State supported schemes such as community employment, back to work or graduate placement and so on. [44922/09]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The supplementary welfare allowance scheme provides for a weekly or monthly supplement to be paid in respect of rent or mortgage interest to any person in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs. The supplementary welfare allowance scheme is administered by the community welfare service of the Health Service Executive on behalf of the Department. The purpose of the rent supplement scheme is to provide short-term 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.

Similarly, mortgage interest supplement provides short-term income 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. Significant improvements have been made to the means test for rent and mortgage interest supplement in recent years. The assessment of means now provides for a gradual withdrawal of payment as hours of employment or earnings increase. Those availing of part-time employment (less than 30 hours a week), community employment, and/or specified training opportunities can continue to receive rent or mortgage interest supplement subject to their satisfying the standard means assessment rules. Where a person has additional income in excess of the standard weekly rate of supplementary welfare allowance, the first €75 of such additional income together with 25% of any additional income above €75 is disregarded for means assessment purposes.

A person is regarded as being in full-time employment where s/he is works for 30 hours a week or more and in general, a person is not entitled to rent or mortgage interest supplement while engaged in remunerative full-time employment. However, where an existing rent supplement tenant has been out of full-time employment for at least 12 months and, has been accepted by a housing authority as being eligible for accommodation under the Rental Accommodation Scheme, that person may engage in full-time employment and still be considered for rent supplement, subject to their satisfying all of the other conditions of the scheme, including a means test. Arrangements are in place to allow a person to participate in approved employment or training schemes or engage in full-time employment and retain entitlement to mortgage interest supplement on a tapered basis for up to 4 years in certain limited circumstances. The Department is actively considering the retention of rent and mortgage interest supplements for those who participate in the graduate placement scheme and a decision will be made shortly.