Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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306. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the extent to which the level of Covid-19 related payments has tapered off in recent weeks; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35713/21]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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This week, just under 228,000 people will receive a Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP), the lowest number to date in 2021, and a decline of 53% since the February 2021 peak. This is a decline of 16,200 (-6.6 %) people compared to last week, and a decline of 175,100 or -43.4% since the Construction sector re-opened. The following table sets out recipient numbers for the February 2021 peak, the week Construction re-opened, the week Retail re-opened, and this week.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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307. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the extent to which there are indications that persons on the pandemic unemployment payment have returned to their previous employment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35714/21]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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When a person closes their Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) claim, they are asked to indicate if they are closing their claim due to returning to work. In the week up to June 29th 2021, some 11,159 people closed their claim and reported that it was because they were returning to work. There is no mechanism in place to identify whether the person is returning to their last employer, or whether they are starting work with a new employer.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.