Written answers
Thursday, 13 May 2021
Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection
Social Welfare Schemes
Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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348. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the target processing time for each scheme benefit and allowance scheme under her Department; when each target was last amended; the number of applications under each scheme in 2020 and the percentage achieved within the target time; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25363/21]
Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Processing targets are published each year on gov.ie in the Revised Estimates and Volume (REV) for the Public Service and kept under review. The 2020 targets have been used in the figures provided below. Most of these targets were set at 90% in 2012 with revisions made to the following in 2017:
- State Pension (Non Contributory)
- Disability Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Invalidity Pension and Domiciliary Care Allowance in 2018.
For 2021:
- the target percentage for Carer's Allowance increased from 70% to 75% and the target period decreased from 12 weeks to 11 weeks.
- the target period for Disability Allowance decreased from 12 weeks to 10 weeks.
The following table lists the schemes subject to these processing targets, the number of claims registered, the target itself and the determined processing rate for 2020.
Note that over 1.5 million applications for the Pandemic Unemployment Payment were processed by my Department in 2020.
| Scheme | Claims Registered | Target % | Target Period | % achieved within the target time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State Pension (Contributory) | 38,808 | 90% | By date of entitlement | 96% |
| Maternity Benefit | 41,987 | 90% | By date of entitlement | 92% |
| Paternity Benefit | 24,884 | 90% | By date of entitlement | 87% |
| Illness Benefit | 278,381 | 90% | 1 week | 84% |
| Occupational Injury Benefit | 5,250 | 90% | 1 week | 49% |
| Supplementary Welfare Allowance | 40,448 | 90% | 1 Week | 95% |
| Free Travel | 4,302 | 90% | 2 Weeks | 95% |
| Jobseeker's Benefit | 194,234 | 90% | 3 Weeks | 89% |
| Child Benefit | 29,607 | 90% | 4 Weeks | 87% |
| Household Benefits | 65,301 | 90% | 4 Weeks | 99% |
| Widow/er's or Surviving Civil Partner's Contributory Pension | 7,782 | 90% | 6 Weeks | 94% |
| Jobseeker's Allowance | 148,202 | 90% | 6 Weeks | 95% |
| One-Parent Family Payment | 5,289 | 90% | 10 Weeks | 95% |
| Invalidity Pension | 9,991 | 90% | 10 Weeks | 87% |
| Domiciliary Care Allowance | 7,289 | 90% | 10 Weeks | 78% |
| State Pension (Non-Contributory) | 8,789 | 75% | 12 Weeks | 88% |
| Carer's Allowance | 18,774 | 70% | 12 Weeks | 87% |
| Disability Allowance | 20,671 | 75% | 12 Weeks | 88% |
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