Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

581. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the case of a person will be examined (details supplied). [27134/20]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

According to the records of my Department, the person concerned applied for a Jobseeker’s Benefit payment on 15/09/2020.  In order to process the application, further documentation was sought from the person concerned on 15/09/2020.  To-date this information has not been provided and the claim remains pending. 

The person concerned applied for a Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) on 18/09/2020 and will receive her first payment to her nominated bank account on 29/09/2020.

If the person concerned is experiencing financial difficulties she can contact her local Community Welfare Service in the Bishop’s Square Intreo Centre where her circumstances will be assessed.  Under the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme, the Department can make a single Exceptional Needs Payment to help meet essential, once-off expenditure, which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income.  There is no automatic entitlement to these payments which are payable at the discretion of the officers administering the scheme, taking into account the requirements of the legislation and all the relevant circumstances of the case, in order to ensure that the payments target those most in need of assistance.  The Community Welfare Service may be contacted by phone at (01) 4763500.

I trust this clarifies the matter.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

582. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection when a person (details supplied) will receive arrears of the pandemic unemployment payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27150/20]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Since the introduction of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment scheme in March, approximately  750,000 people have applied for payment and in some cases, they have done so on a number of occasions as they moved in and out of employment.  Consequently, there are over 1 million applications to be examined to determine if arrears are due.  

In order to address an issue of this scale, the Department is currently developing an automated process, which will examine each case and look at their overall entitlement to payment and match this against their payment history.  The work involved is complex as the Pandemic Unemployment Payment system itself evolved from a manual applications system to one where applications were submitted online and paid over two different payment platforms (one from March to July and the second from July to date).

Given the complexity attached to the project, it will take some time yet to complete the necessary development work to review all cases and to determine to what extent, if any, arrears are due to individuals. It is hoped to make the arrears payments before the end of this year.