Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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77. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she is satisfied regarding the availability to her Department of the necessary resources to meet the widest possible scale of eventualities arising from the ongoing economic situation which she inherited, with particular reference to the need to meet the needs of all categories of persons now dependent on a payment from her Department with particular reference to incentives to address such issues such as youth unemployment, disability/invalidity payments/entitlements and/or upskilling; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33189/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The Estimates for the Department of Social Protection as published in the 2013 Revised Estimates (REV) provides for expenditure of €20.243 billion on schemes, services and administration in 2013. The Estimates are based, in the main, on an analysis of trends as regards likely numbers of recipients and average value of payments in 2013. Actual trends on individual schemes are being closely monitored on an on-going basis and overall expenditure is very close to target at the end of June. Decisions about the adequacy of resources available to the Department in 2014 will be taken in the overall budgetary context.

The Deputy will be aware that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform's Expenditure Report 2013 published last December provides for additional new expenditure reduction measures of €440 million to be achieved in 2014 in the Department of Social Protection. Reducing overall expenditure in 2014 in line with this target will be very challenging. The Government will be giving detailed consideration to the formulation and composition of its overall Budget package and future expenditure ceilings over the coming months, including measures relating to this Department.