Written answers
Wednesday, 18 September 2013
Department of Social Protection
Supplementary Welfare Allowance Applications
Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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635. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if there has been an increase in the number of applicants refused social welfare assistance while waiting for their application for another scheme to be processed; if she will provide figures on the number of applications for SWA granted and refused for each month for the past two years. [37803/13]
Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme is the safety net within the overall social welfare system in that it provides assistance to eligible people in the State whose means are insufficient to meet their needs and those of their dependants. The Government has provided approximately €718 million for the various SWA schemes in 2013. Basic weekly SWA may be payable to customers awaiting the outcome of a claim or an appeal for a primary social welfare payment. The following is a tabular statement outlining the number of basic weekly SWA claims awarded and disallowed in 2011 and 2012. While the overall number of applications refused has decreased from a total of 4,344 in 2011 to 4,058 in 2012, the percentage of refused claims in relation to those awarded represents approximately 5% in both years.
Table 1: Number of Basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance claims awarded and disallowed by month for 2011.
Month | NumberAwarded | NumberDisallowed |
---|---|---|
January | 7,218 | 322 |
February | 7,882 | 435 |
March | 7,307 | 387 |
April | 8,716 | 319 |
May | 7,004 | 347 |
June | 8,181 | 332 |
July | 10,130 | 430 |
August | 7,084 | 429 |
September | 9,521 | 385 |
October | 7,695 | 329 |
November | 7,003 | 319 |
December | 7,486 | 310 |
Total | 95,227 | 4,344 |
Table 2: Number of Basic Supplementary Welfare Allowance claims awarded and disallowed by month for 2012.
Month | NumberAwarded | NumberDisallowed |
---|---|---|
January | 6,562 | 337 |
February | 7,127 | 380 |
March | 8,199 | 384 |
April | 6,228 | 287 |
May | 6,296 | 339 |
June | 8,963 | 322 |
July | 7,140 | 373 |
August | 8,015 | 330 |
September | 6,899 | 302 |
October | 7,027 | 359 |
November | 7,596 | 394 |
December | 5,069 | 251 |
Total | 85,121 | 4,058 |
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