Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry South, Independent)
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244. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the length of time people have to wait to receive carer's allowance; the average length of time persons have to wait from the time they apply to when they actually receive a final decision of either granting them, refusing them or seeking further information from them; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29173/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The Department is committed to ensuring that claims are processed as expeditiously as possible. The waiting lists and processing times for carer’s allowance were unacceptable in 2012 but significant improvements have been made in the past year by my Department. The backlog of carer’s allowance applications has been eliminated and processing times have improved greatly, with new applications now being actioned on receipt and applications received in the last 6 months are now decided within 8 weeks.

The total number carer’s allowance applications which were awaiting decision at mid-June 2012 were approximately 11,600. At present, the number is approximately 2,900 cases. Most of these applications are already processed and are awaiting further information from customers or are part of the appeals process. The aim is to action new applications within a week of receipt. It should be noted that the processing time for individual applications can vary depending on the complexity of the applicant's circumstances and the information they provide in support