I thank the Deputy. People wanting to stay on longer on community employment schemes has been the most frequent request I have received since becoming Minister. As the Deputy is aware I am new to this Department and will be looking at these issues. I want to get the balance right between getting people back to full-time employment while also recognising that for some people, it is going to be more difficult. I am aware of cases across the country and in my own constituency where there are particular circumstances. …

Yes, I am a great believer in common sense. The only problem is that sometimes it is not as common as one might like. The issue is about getting the balance right. Extending duration could impact on opportunities for other people getting onto the scheme. I understand that some really good work is being done by CE schemes throughout the country in many different areas, and we do not want to take away from this. Participants are doing a job they like and they want to continue doing that job and may not want to take t…

I thank the Deputy for raising this further matter. My Department engaged with external consultants in December 2019 to review all current contracted public employment services, PES, including local employment services. The consultants' report, currently being finalised, will help inform the Government's approach on the future structure of all contracted PES. It is essential that we ensure all our public employment services are fit-for-purpose and provide value-for-money. This must be balanced against the pressing …

The Deputy is correct. Some 287,000 people are still on the PUP. We hope that as the economy continues to reopen, more people will return to work. The unfortunate reality is, however, that not all of them will be able to return to the jobs they had before the onset of Covid-19. There are also 220,000 people on the live register, so my focus will be on supporting those individuals in getting back into employment. That is why, as part of the July stimulus package, the Minister with responsibility for higher education…

As the Deputy knows, the Department engages external consultants. The report currently being finalised will inform the Government's decision on a future structure. Once the report is ready, decisions will be taken on the best approach to ensuring we have the necessary capacity to ensure the public employment service can provide a quality operation. As I stated, my officials will come to me with a full report on that. When I have it, I will make a decision.

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. My Department regularly engages with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and I hope to meet some of its representatives very soon. Life in Ireland has changed considerably over the past few months and many people in Ireland are living in very difficult circumstances. This is why my Department quickly rolled out supports like the Covid-19 PUP and, in conjunction with the Department of Finance and the Revenue Commissioners, the temporary wage subsidy as emergency payments to…

The roadmap was approved by the Government on 9 January 2020 and published on 14 January. It really is a whole-of-government strategy, with a five-year timeframe and a mid-term review in 2022. The best way out of poverty is to get people into work, and that is a key focus of the additional funding for job activation measures contained in the €200 million stimulus package I spoke of earlier. The official poverty data is produced annually by the Central Statistics Office from the survey on income and living condition…

The economy is reopening and, as the Deputy knows, we hope the remaining businesses can open on 10 August. We are following public health advice so I cannot give the Deputy a timeline on when anything will open. It is all based on public health advice, which must be followed and which has served us well. We will base our decisions on that advice. EUROSTAT has recognised that the Irish tax and welfare system is the most effective in the EU at reducing poverty. As Minister for Social Protection and Minister for Rural…

I am pleased to be in the Seanad to discuss this important legislation. The Government is absolutely committed to supporting people who have lost their jobs due to Covid-19, which is why we have extended the pandemic unemployment payment, PUP, to next April. As the payment will now be continued for a much longer period than the 12-week period that had originally been envisaged, it is important that it be put on a statutory footing, which is what the Bill will do. I would like to take this opportunity to address som…

The new Programme for Government - Our Shared Future proposes an early retirement allowance or pension for 65 year olds, paid at the same rate as jobseeker's benefit without a requirement to sign on, partake in any activation measures or be available for and genuinely seeking work.  The new payment will be introduced as early as possible for those who are retired from employment. I made this an immediate priority on coming into the Department and my officials are currently considering the design of the scheme and a…

I thank the Deputy. There is no statutory retirement age in the State. I recognise the need for a payment for 65 year olds who are required to retire early or choose to do so. I have directed officials in my Department to introduce the early retirement allowance or pension as soon as possible. Officials in my Department are assessing the legislative, technological and administrative issues. We must ensure a robust system is in place before that is rolled out. The State pension age will not increase to 67 next year.…

I agree with the Deputy that people who want to work for longer should be allowed to. Let us face it; we are living longer, we are healthier and we want to work. It is good for a person's health to continue to work. Many have said that those who work longer live longer. We certainly need to look at that. The commission will examine a range of issues when it is set up. I will await the findings of its report on the entire matter.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 22, 26, 81 and 92 together. I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The Government stated in the Programme for Government - Our Shared Future that the increase in the State pension age planned for next year will be deferred.  This will require the amendment of primary legislation. The Government will bring the necessary legislation before the Oireachtas later this year. The public policy and social issues related to funding a sustainable and adequate State pension system are comp…

To clarify, if someone reaches the age of 65 and has to retire for whatever reason, he or she does not have to sign on, as is the requirement for jobseeker's allowance. He or she has just to fill out an application form. Furthermore, such an applicant does not have to be actively seeking work and he or she will receive a payment of €203 for the duration of the year before going onto the State pension. I too have been on the doorsteps and I also listen to people. We are taking a fresh look at everything, which is wh…

They are on the website.

I reiterate that that has been changed. If someone reaches the age of 65 and is going to retire, he or she must fill out one form and that is it. He or she will not be asked to sign on again and will receive the payment for the full 12 months prior to reaching the pension age at 66. That is an improvement. Nevertheless, I accept what the Deputy is saying. For people who have worked all their lives, it was unfair that they had to sign on for jobseeker's allowance. That has been changed and such people will now be ab…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 23 and 44 together. Currently, PRSI-credited contributions or credits are awarded to former employees only, to cover gaps in social insurance where they are not in a position to pay PRSI contributions, such as during periods of unemployment or illness. Self-employed workers do not qualify for credits as one social insurance payment per annum provides the full 52 contributions for that year. The farm assist scheme was introduced in 1999 to provide income support for low-income farmer…

The farm assist scheme is absolutely essential. There are farmers who benefit from it and need it to put bread on the table. I am absolutely committed to the scheme. The Deputy is referring to a particular cohort of farmers who were in the scheme from 1999 to 2007 and I take his point. I am very new in this job but I would be happy to sit down with the Deputy and try to find some resolution. As he said, the number of farmers involved is not huge and I agree that they did not realise they had to make these payments.…

I would be happy to examine this matter with Deputies Smith and Ó Cuív to try to find a resolution for this particular group of people. As I said, I am new to the job. Sometimes decisions made in one area can have unintended consequences in other areas. I will arrange the meeting as soon as we can. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter.

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. I understand the question seeks my view on whether the weekly payment rates for schemes such as the community employment, rural social and Tús schemes represent a fair and adequate incentive to a married person to participate in the schemes. My Department provides a range of social employment and training programmes that are targeted at long-term unemployed jobseekers and those most distant from the labour market. These supports include the community employment, Tús and r…