Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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132. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 217 of 3 November 2015, if she is aware of any individual problems persons have been facing in social protection offices when trying to provide proof of actively seeking employment; her views that the current system is very loose; and that a fairer system needs to be put in place to differentiate between persons who are desperately trying to find employment and those who are not, for the benefit of the applicant and the deciding officer in social protection offices. [40250/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The current system of establishing if a person is genuinely seeking work is well established and based on a number of steps that have to be taken by all customers in order to satisfy the Department that they are actively seeking work.

These steps may include making oral, written or on-line applications for work, researching job vacancies, availing of reasonable training opportunities, acting on the advice given by a case officer or taking steps to become self-employed.

All customers must be in a position to show that they have taken reasonable steps to secure employment and provide examples of such steps. These steps will vary from person to person having regard to their age, education, physique, location and family circumstances.

In determining what are reasonable steps, the deciding officer (DO) considers the nature and conditions of the employment sought and has regard to the individual circumstances of the person concerned in examining the steps taken to seek employment.

When deciding whether a person has made genuine efforts to seek employment, a DO considers all the circumstances, taking into account a person’s skills, qualification and work experience, period(s) of unemployment, the efforts made to seek employment, the availability and location of vacancies and the person’s family circumstances.

Every case is decided based on the individual circumstances of the case. Where a customer is not satisfied with the decision of the DO, this decision can be appealed to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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133. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection her views that a system which prohibits a cohabiting unemployed parent from claiming a jobseeker's benefit based on the income of the other parent is a contributing factor to social protection fraud in some cases, whereby parents in relationships can, on occasion, claim to be separated in order to receive benefit under the one-parent family payment scheme and the jobseeker's scheme; and the action she has taken to ensure that honest persons are not a loss while unemployed. [40251/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The jobseeker's benefit scheme provides income support for people who lose work and who have the required number of social insurance contributions. The 2015 Estimates for the Department provide for expenditure on jobseeker’s benefit of €407 million.

Jobseeker’s benefit is not a means tested payment and as such the means of a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant are not assessed against a jobseeker’s payment. However, a partner’s means will be taken into account when assessing whether or not a jobseeker’s payment includes an increase for a qualified adult (IQA).

If a qualified adult is earning €100 or less, a maximum IQA (of €124.80 per week) will be paid. If he or she is earning between €100 and €310 a reduced rate of IQA will be paid. If the qualified adult is earning more than €310 no increase will be paid.

In the case of an individual not being eligible for jobseeker’s benefit due to insufficient social insurance contributions they may apply for jobseeker’s allowance, which is a means tested payment. If the individual is cohabiting then the means of their partner will be taken into account in assessing their entitlement.

In the case of a couple with children who separate or divorce, or where a civil partnership has been dissolved, should one of the parents claim a One Parent Family Payment they must:

- have been living apart from his/her spouse or civil partner for at least 3 months, and

- have made, and continue to make, appropriate efforts to get maintenance from his or her spouse or civil partner (i.e. where the civil partner is the other parent of the child or children).

Continued entitlement to one parent family payment is conditional on efforts being made to seek maintenance from the other parent of the child or children.

Social welfare inspectors have a key role in investigating and advising the Department’s deciding officers on whether a couple are in fact separated. No single criterion can necessarily support a decision that a couple are separated or not. The criteria for assessing cohabitation are:

- Duration of the relationship

- The basis on which the couple live together

- The degree of financial dependence of either adult on the other and any agreements in respect of their finances

- The degree and nature of any financial arrangements between the adults

- Whether there are one or more dependent children

- Whether one of the adults cares for and supports the children of the other

- The degree to which the adults present themselves to others as a couple.

It is essential that as much information as possible is gathered on all the criteria before a decision is made on whether a couple are separated or not.

The Department has a range of measures to prevent and detect fraud, and to ensure effective debt recovery and deterrence measures are in place. Social welfare inspectors can and regularly investigate whether existing recipients of the one parent family payment are continuing to parent alone. In circumstances where they are found to be cohabiting they will be disqualified from payment and where it was deemed that fraud had occurred further actions including debt recovery may be taken.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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134. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection if lone parents who are in full-time education and who are in receipt of the maintenance grant and the jobseeker's allowance transition payment will be worse off financially when their youngest child turns 14 years of age; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40255/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Recipients of the one-parent family payment (OFP) who were due to transition from that scheme on 2 July 2015, and who were participating in full time education were allowed to retain their OFP payment until completion of their course. If applicable, these individuals were able to also retain their Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) grant, subject to the normal conditions for the grant. The maintenance portion of the grant will continue to be disregarded for means on OFP.

Since the 2 July 2015, customers who transition from OFP have a youngest child aged 7 years and can move to the jobseeker’s transitional payment. The jobseeker’s transitional payment allows customers to study full-time and to simultaneously receive the SUSI grant if eligible. The maintenance portion of the grant is also disregarded when calculating means on the jobseeker’s transitional payment.

As the jobseeker’s transitional payment is paid until the youngest child reaches 14 years of age these customers effectively have up to seven years to complete their course of education, with the benefit of the SUSI grant if applicable and with payment from the Department, subject to the normal conditions for receipt of the jobseeker’s transitional payment.

Jobseeker’s transitional payment customers must sign a quarterly declaration that advises the Department of any changes in circumstances. If a customer indicates an intention to take up an educational opportunity, the Department will provide advice on the best option for them to complete their course of study. If the customer will complete the course before their youngest child reaches 14 they can remain on the jobseeker’s transitional payment and apply for the SUSI grant where appropriate. If the customer is not likely to complete the course before their youngest child reaches 14 they will be advised that as they cannot pursue the course and receive a jobseeker’s allowance payment, their best option is to instead apply for the Back to Education Allowance. This ensures that in both situations the customer can complete their course with financial support from the Department.

All recipients of the jobseeker’s transitional payment receive a one-to-one meeting with a case officer who can advise them on the educational options available to them.