Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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257. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to review the case of an appeal regarding State pension non-contributory arrears for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16357/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.

I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all the evidence, disallowed the appeal of the person concerned in December 2020.

The Social Welfare Appeals system is underpinned by Chapter 2 of Part 10 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act, 2005 and the Social Welfare (Appeals) Regulations (SI 108/98). This legislation sets down the roles, powers, functions etc. of the Social Welfare Appeals Office and its Appeals Officers. Appeals Officers and the Social Welfare Appeals Office are required to operate within the powers and boundaries set down in this legislation.

Under the legislation, the decision of an Appeals Officer is final and conclusive and may only be reviewed under section 317 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act, 2005 by an Appeals Officer in the light of new evidence or new facts. There were three section 317 reviews of this appeal decision and in all cases the Appeals Officer found that the appeal decision should stand..

The Chief Appeals Officer has power under section 318 of the Social Welfare Consolidation Act, 2005 to revise any decision where it appears to her that the Appeals Officer’s decision was erroneous by reason of some mistake having been made in relation to the law or the facts.

A request for a section 318 review was made to the Chief Appeals Officer and she is prioritising this review. The person concerned will be notified directly when the Chief Appeals Officer’s decision becomes available.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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258. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason for the lengthy delays in processing appeals by the Social Welfare Appeals Office as compared to the timelines in 2023 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16364/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.

The average processing time for appeals at end of March, 2025 is 20.9 weeks. The time taken to process appeals reflects the need to consider each decision in detail and, in many cases, to examine additional information submitted at appeal stage and, in some cases to seek further information by way of correspondence or oral hearing. The Chief Appeals Officer continues to monitor processing times and every effort is made to reduce the time taken to process an appeal. However, the drive for efficiency must be balanced with the competing demand to ensure that decisions are consistent and made in accordance with the provisions set out in primary legislation and regulations.

The Chief Appeals Officer has put in place measures to deal with the increase in appeals received during 2024. 20 additional staff were assigned and attended training during December 2024 and January 2025. They have now been appointed as Appeals Officers and are making decisions on appeals. In addition new Appeals Regulations have been signed to come into effect from April this year which provide, among other things, for simpler processes and specified response times. These should further help to reduce processing times.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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259. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the average waiting time for processing an appeal by the Social Welfare Appeals Office in 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16365/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.

In 2024 the average time taken to process an appeal was 23.5 weeks. The average processing time at end of March 2025 is 20.9 weeks.

The time taken to process appeals reflects the need to consider each appeal in detail and, in many cases, examine additional information submitted at appeal stage. The Chief Appeals Officer continues to monitor processing times and every effort is made to reduce the time taken to process an appeal. However, the drive for efficiency must be balanced with the competing demand to ensure that decisions are consistent and made in accordance with the provisions set out in primary legislation and regulations.

The Chief Appeals Officer has put in place measures to deal with the increase in appeals received during 2024. 20 additional staff were assigned and attended training during December 2024 and January 2025. They have now been appointed as Appeals Officers and are making appeal decisions.

Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein)
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260. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the reason for the delays in processing an appeal for a person (details supplied) by the Social Welfare Appeals Office; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16366/25]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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The Social Welfare Appeals Office is an Office of the Department of Social Protection which is responsible for determining appeals against decisions in relation to social welfare entitlements. Appeals Officers are independent in their decision making functions.

I am advised by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that an Appeals Officer, having fully considered all of the available evidence, has decided to disallow the appeal of the person concerned by way of a summary decision. The person concerned has been notified of the Appeals Officer’s decision.