Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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139. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection why a letter to claim the water conservation grant was not issued to a person (details supplied) in County Wexford; if it will be re-issued and a late application permitted; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42515/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The eligibility criteria for the Water Conservation Grant are set out in the Water Services Act 2014 (Water Conservation Grant) Regulations 2015. Under regulation 5(1) a person who registers with Irish Water, as required under section 5(2)(a) of the Water Services Act 2014, on or before 30 June 2015 shall be eligible to receive the grant in 2015 if they were normally resident at the principal private residence on that date.

To date Irish Water has transferred details of over 1.3 million registered households to this Department including the details of the person concerned. A letter issued to the person concerned at the address given inviting them to apply for the grant before the deadline of 8 October 2015 and advising them that they could make this application either online or with the assistance of the Water Grant Support Team by telephone. Statutory Instrument 434 of 2015 provided for the extension of the deadline for the submission of a completed application for the Water Conservation Grant to the Department of Social Protection from 8 October 2015 to 22 October 2015. However, there is no record of the person having applied for the grant prior to the closing date.