Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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117. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she has responsibility regarding paying out a full rate qualified allowance to a person in receipt of the jobseekers allowance in respect of their spouse who was in employment for a period of over three years and where the spouse's P60's were returned each year to the Revenue with the PPS number and the measures in place between her Department and Revenue to ensure that a system was in place over a number of years to ensure that persons were not making a claim in respect of a spouse who the Government bodies were aware of was in employment, notwithstanding the responsibility on the person not to make an over claim; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28208/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Every week, the Department pays nearly 1.5 million people a social welfare payment and, when qualified adults and children are included, almost 2.3 million people benefit from weekly payments from the Department.

The Department engages in data exchange and matching exercises with other Government Departments and public bodies, including the Revenue Commissioners, for control purposes. Data matching is an efficient and effective mechanism to target control related activity. It is an important preventative and detection control measure.

However, it is the customer’s responsibility to provide full and accurate information about their particular circumstances to support their claim and they must also inform the Department promptly if their circumstances change as this may affect their entitlements.

An overpayment is any social welfare assistance or benefit payment which the person who received the amount was not entitled to receive. Where overpayments occur, they are regarded as a debt to the Exchequer and every effort must be – and is - made to recover the amounts due.

Debt holders should be aware that a Departmental debt will remain on their records until it is fully recovered. This may result in a reduction of all future entitlements up to and including state pension.