Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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804. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the average waiting time in 2016 for a decision in respect of all social protection payments in tabular form; the average waiting time for appeal for each of these where there is no oral hearing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26105/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The information requested (where available) by the deputy is detailed in the following table:

Social Welfare claims by average waiting times 31 August 2016

The average waiting time for appeals determined summarily in 2016 broken down by scheme area is set out in the following table.

The dramatic increase in appeal receipts as a result of the economic downturn put significant pressure on the appeal system and impacted adversely on processing times. Appeal receipts peaked in 2012 at 35,500 from an average of 15,000 per year and have reduced annually thereafter to just below 25,000 in 2015.

Significant effort and resources have been devoted to reforming the appeals process in recent years, resulting in a marked improvement in processing times, with the average time taken to finalise a summary appeal dropping from 25.1 weeks in 2011 to 18.1 weeks in 2015, and to 17.6 weeks to date in 2016.

The quasi-judicial nature of the appeals system means that there are inevitable time lags involved. However the system is designed to be flexible and fair and allows for review and submission of further information at all stages. The time taken is proportionate to the complexity of many of the issues under appeal which require a high level of judgement, and the need to ensure due process and natural justice.

Appeal processing times by scheme 01/01/2016 – 31/08/2016