Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Social Protection if a person who is in receipt of a jobseeker's payment takes up full time employment is entitled to retain social welfare ancillary benefits for a period of time in order to assist with the transition into employment; and if she will consider further introducing a graduated system whereby such benefits would be gradually reduced as opposed to removing them altogether. [17980/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The Department of Social Protection currently operates a number of activation schemes to support people in getting back to work or back into education. Customers who were previously in receipt of fuel allowance and/or household benefits may retain these secondary benefits if they are taking part in programmes such as back to work enterprise allowance, rural social scheme, tús, jobbridge, revenue job assist or community employment schemes.

However when customers takes up full time employment they would not be entitled to retain these secondary benefits as it would not be equitable to provide benefits for people returning to employment which were not available for those currently in employment.

Other benefits such as the local authority differential rent scheme and the medical card are not administered by the Department of Social Protection. However, in relation to the medical card it may be noted that entitlement is retained for three years if a persons is returning to full-time work having been in receipt of an unemployment payment or one parent family payment for at least 12 months.