Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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To ask the Minister for Social Protection the current waiting time for an application for invalidity pension; the number of applicants currently waiting for their invalidity pension application to be processed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5233/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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There are currently approximately 2,880 Invalidity Pension (IP) claims registered, actions and awaiting information to finalise a decision. This includes approximately 900 cases which are being investigated under EU regulations or bi-lateral agreements which are more complex and take longer to decide. A targeted plan was put in place to clear the backlog, which is steadily decreasing e.g. from 7,007 at end May 2012 to 4,561 at end of October 2012 and to 2,880 at the end of January 2013. All of the 2880 claims have been actioned by my department and are awaiting further information from the customers or a medical assessment.

Approximately 220 new invalidity pension claims are received in the Department each week and these are examined and decided where all information is available within a few days of receipt. Where a medical assessment and/or further information are required, these are requested without delay. Once all the necessary information is received, the claim is processed promptly.