Results 281-300 of 17,800 for are speaker:Heather Humphreys

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...on Vote 37 in 2024. This range of once-off cost-of-living measures includes an autumn bonus, a fuel allowance lump sum and a lump sum for people living alone. It also includes lump sums for our carers, people on disabilities and those on the working family payment. There will also be two double child benefit payments, a child support payment, which was previously known as the increase...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ..., it was published in 2020. I always go back to see what was said 15 or 20 years ago because I am always told the short-term projections may not be as accurate but the long-term projections are always right. The 2020 report had not anticipated quite such a surplus in the Social Insurance Fund, but we have 2.7 million people working and we have never had so many in the workforce. That...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: The Deputy is absolutely right. If we did not have the contribution of people who are coming to this country and working and contributing to our Social Insurance Fund, we would not have huge surpluses we have today. There are 500,000 working immigrants who are paying PRSI. I had a figure at one stage but I believe they have contributed €1.6 billion or €2 billion to the...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: .... I think we could make some very small changes that would make a huge difference but before we can make those changes we had to carry out this review. We have over 90 schemes and a significant number are means tested. Each has its own means test. The purpose of the review was to look at the different schemes and to identify any issues around the application of the respective means...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: It is a few bob in people’s pockets and it is the same thing with the Christmas bonus. People go shopping. There are always pressures at Christmas time and it does help. The Deputy also mentioned the child benefit. He is correct that we need to support families, including working families, and children. In this regard, the hot school meals programme has been very successful....

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: -----figures we now have mean we are in a happy position of surplus. Having said that, the Deputy knows I have taken action through very small increases in PRSI. That is the right thing to do-----

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...is the right time to do it. For the next five years, we have a very clear pathway on PRSI and how we can provide for the future in this regard. It will not always be like this. The Deputy and I are around long enough to know that and we need to prepare for the rainy day.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I agree with the Deputy on that. We have paid out the lump sum. We paid two lump sums last year and gave the spring bonus. The payments are being made available again this year. It will be up to the next Government, of course, to address this. The payments are having a huge impact in reducing poverty. They certainly have a place in people’s pockets and, as we know, it would be...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...The Deputy referred to Social Justice Ireland. In its pre-budget submission and its post-budget analysis, Social Justice Ireland called for an increase of €25 per week in all weekly social welfare payments. This would cost approximately €1.9 billion. However, the total Department of Social Protection budget package was worth €2.6 billion, with €1.2 billion...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I will come back in on that. As regards the carer's allowance, the Department needs a lead-in time to undertake reviews of the means test and to contact people whose payment might be affected to give them the opportunity to update the means data the Department has on them. Basically, while we can change the IT systems quickly, we have to apply the changes to every individual claim and we...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ...our houses. The new means threshold was introduced for the over-70s, as I said, and it will apply to those over 66 from next year. From January 2023, the disabled benefit payment and half-rate carer's is disregarded when assessing means for fuel allowance purposes. In addition, in budget 2025, I announced the enhanced fuel allowance measures for those under 70. That will be available...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ..., A.2, as the Deputy said, non-pay. A lot of the increase there would be to do with the payments we make for medical certs. We pay the doctors for the medical certs, obviously, for people who are off sick. We also pay An Post for the services it delivers on our behalf. When I am in here with my rural hat on, everybody wants everybody in the post office to collect their payments, and I...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: On the last question, we are going to look at a review of the means test, which is fair enough. As for trying to target the fuel allowance at the type of house a person has, God bless us that would be an awful job as we tried to decide who would get it and who would not. The child benefit payment was mentioned, but the minute you bring in a means test there will be winners and losers....

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: There are 93,000.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: That is fine and that is based on what we know, but there are people who say we should get rid of the means test altogether for carers. Based on current figures we reckoned that would cost €600 million. Then it could increase up to €2 billion based on the number of people who said they are in a caring role in the census.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: I will have to check that because I am not sure. I know about the CE supervisors. We are talking to them at the minute. They are looking for a pay increase. We are talking to them any way. We always talk to them.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Legal Cases (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: ... 21 2020 31 2019 15 2018 45 2017 32 Accurate figures for the years prior to 2017 are not readily available.

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Data Protection (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: My Department recorded the following number of data breaches in each of the years since 2016 and to date in 2024. No records are available for the period before 2016. Year Number of data breaches 2016 57 2017 108 2018 226 2019 371 2020 508 2021 646 2022 502 2023 681 2024 to date 538 The vast majority of the confirmed data...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Consultations (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: Details as requested by the Deputy are set out in tabular form below. Total consultancy fees 2014 - 2024 2024 to date €877,707 2023 €522,153 2022 €1,144,457 2021 €511,886 2020 €425,196 2019 ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Advertising (16 Oct 2024)

Heather Humphreys: My Department is committed to ensuring that members of the public are aware of the welfare supports and services that are available to them and that they are notified of any scheme changes which may affect them. Public information and advertising campaigns are an important part of our work and cover national and regional print media and radio, digital and social media. All campaigns are...