Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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To ask the Minister for Social Protection if there has been a change in policy in 2012 in respect of housing applicants who have been approved for rent assistance and where the social housing needs assessment has post dated the commencement of the tenancy, sometimes by months; if a change has been made to refuse to pay arrears; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41295/12]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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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. The overall aim is to provide short term assistance, and not to act as an alternative to the other social housing schemes operated by the Exchequer. There are currently approximately 90,000 persons in receipt of rent supplement, for which the Government has provided €436m in 2012.

To qualify for rent supplement a person must be residing in private rented accommodation or accommodation for homeless persons or in an institution (or any combination of these) for a period of 183 days within the preceding 12 months of the date of claim for rent supplement. A person may also qualify for rent supplement where an assessment of housing need has been carried out within the 12 months preceding the date of claim and the person is deemed by a local authority to be eligible for and in need of social housing support. In all other cases, a person who wishes to apply for rent supplement is referred, in the first instance, for an assessment of eligibility for social housing support by a housing authority.

Only when the person has been assessed as being eligible for and in need of social housing support, does the person become eligible for consideration for rent supplement. Rent supplement is not payable while a housing needs assessment is being undertaken. There has been no policy change to the eligibility criteria in 2012.