Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Anti-Austerity Alliance)
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77. To ask the Minister for Social Protection his plans on cutting unemployment payments following reported comments (details supplied) made at a recent Pobal conference in Dublin City University; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36026/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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In addition to assisting unemployed jobseekers through the payment of income supports the Department of Social Protection, through its Intreo service, provides a range of employment supports and services to assist jobseekers find and secure employment. As unemployed jobseekers in receipt of jobseeker payments certify that they are genuinely seeking and available for work it is expected that they will avail of these employment supports and services. This is in line with the principle of “rights and responsibilities’’; in other words unemployed people have a right to income supports and employment services from the State but also have a responsibility to engage with those services when in receipt of a payment. Accordingly since 2011, the application of reduced rates of payment has been provided for under Social Welfare legislation.

Under this Legislation a Deciding Officer may, where recipients of jobseeker payments fail, without good cause, to engage with activation services, apply a reduction to the jobseeker payment. Activation measures include the requirement to attend group or individual meetings with case officers, and/or avail of suitable education, training or development opportunities, or specified employment programmes, which are considered appropriate to a person’s circumstances.

If a person continues to fail, without good cause, to comply with activation measures, while on a reduced rate of payment, he/she may be disqualified from receiving the personal rate of payment for up to 9 weeks. The normal rate of payment may be reinstated at any time, if the jobseeker reengages, as requested, with activation measures. There are no plans to change these reduced payment rate provisions at this time.