Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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332. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the current waiting times for an application for State pension contributory; the number of applications currently waiting to be processed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2429/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Currently 97% of applications for State pension (contributory) are decided by their date of entitlement. The average waiting time for a decision on a State pension (contributory) application is 3 weeks.

Table: State pension (contributory) applications on hand:

SPC applications awaiting decision (17 January 2013)

The Department is committed to ensuring that State pension (contributory) applications are processed as expeditiously as possible. As part of the Department’s programme of service delivery modernisation, a range of initiatives aimed at streamlining the processing of State pension (contributory) applications, supported by modern technology, have been implemented in recent years. Operational processes, procedures and the organisation of work are continually reviewed to ensure that processing capability is maximised.

I wish to assure the Deputy that the prompt processing of State pension (contributory) applications remains a priority for me.