Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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298. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if he is satisfied with the level of data that is collected on the issues which come under his Department's remit; the steps he will take to work with the administration in Northern Ireland to collect data under his aegis on a North-South basis; and the budgets he will put in place to undertake this work (details supplied). [14447/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I am satisfied that the Department collects and has access to the data that is required to perform its functions.

The Department works closely with and exchanges data, in accordance with the law, with administrations in other States for the purposes of assessing entitlement to, and making, welfare payments. As part of this process Department officials meet regularly with their counterparts in Northern Ireland and activities are co-ordinated as appropriate to support service delivery and control operations.