Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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636. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if points raised in correspondence (details supplied) will be examined; if a response will issue in relation to same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9660/20]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) was introduced by my Department in response to the Covid-19 pandemic emergency. As stipulated in the scheme guidelines both employees and self-employed people can apply for the payment if they satisfy a number of qualifying conditions as set out below.

In order to qualify for the payment, the applicant must:

- be aged between 18 and 66 years old and

- be currently living in the Republic of Ireland and

- have lost their job due to the COVID-19 pandemic or

- have been temporarily laid off due to the COVID-19 pandemic and

- have worked in the Republic of Ireland or were a cross border frontier worker and

- not be in receipt of any employment income.

In order to ensure business continuity across its schemes my Department gave a commitment to continue funding all Community Employment (CE) schemes throughout the emergency period, which included the continued funding of wages for CE participants. In this context, as CE participants are in receipt of an employment income, they do not meet the criteria for receipt of the Covid-19 PUP.

However, where a CE participant loses their employment outside of CE, their second employer can apply for the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme (TWSS) administered by the Revenue Commissioners to assist in the continuation of a wage payment, subject to certain conditions.