Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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709. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) was denied access to the insolvency pension fund; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25010/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Under the provisions of the Protection of Employees (Employers’ Insolvency) Act 1984, a company shall be regarded as being insolvent if the company is placed into receivership or a winding-up order has been made or a resolution for the voluntary liquidation of the company has been passed. The Act does not cover informal insolvency where employers cease trading without engaging in any formal wind-up process.

The former employers of the person concerned ceased trading without engaging in any such formal wind-up process. This means that the person concerned cannot access the insolvency payments scheme as they fall outside the provisions of the Protection of Employees (Employers’ Insolvency) Act 1984.

The Department is continuing to review the situation of informal insolvency to ascertain what can be done to provide access for affected employees to the insolvency payments scheme.

I hope that this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.