Latest news with #DepartmentofSocialProtection
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Health
- RTÉ News
Complaints to Ombudsman rose 30% in five years to 2024
The number of complaints to the Ombudsman rose by over 30% between 2019 and 2024, according to its latest annual report. Last year, almost 1,500 complaints out of a total of 4,478 were about local authorities. Almost 1,400 related to Government departments and offices. The Department of Social Protection was the subject of over 600 complaints. There were 887 complaints about public bodies in the health sector with 705 involving the HSE and 149 about the child and family agency Tusla. The Ombudsman Ger Deering used the annual report as an opportunity to call on the Government to provide funding to support younger people in nursing homes and, where appropriate, move them to more suitable accommodation. Following an investigation by the Ombudsman in 2021, the HSE set up an 'under-65 programme' and successfully transitioned over 100 people to more suitable accommodation. The scheme - according to the report - also "improved the lives" of those who could not transition out of nursing homes. 'Completely unacceptable' scheme cannot be delivered - Ombudsman However, the HSE has said that there is insufficient funding to continue to assist many of the young people to move to more appropriate accommodation or to continue the programme. Mr Deering described as "completely unacceptable", that the programme, which brought hope and independence to people with disabilities "cannot be delivered because of a lack of funding". When it comes to supporting disabled people to access transport, he welcomed a commitment from the Department of Transport to develop a new scheme. The Ombudsman has noted that over the last 13 years, he and his two predecessors highlighted the lack of appropriate supports for people with disabilities since the Mobility Allowance and the Motorised Transport Grant were closed to new applicants. He expressed cautious optimism that "a long-standing injustice" was about to be righted, adding that, progress would be closely monitored. Department of Social Protection complaint A number of complaints have been highlighted in the report including one where the Department of Social Protection mistakenly recalled payment from a deceased carer's account. 'Anne' contacted the Ombudsman after the department recalled a payment of over €2,700 it incorrectly believed it had paid to the bank account of her son and carer, Martin, who had recently died. Anne and her family contacted the department several times over a 12-month period to highlight the error and get a refund, but the Department refused. It emerged that while Anne had notified the Department of her son's death, the department had attempted to continue to pay Carer's Allowance and a Carer's Support Grant into Martin's account. As his account had been closed, the bank automatically returned any payments to the department. However, the department did not know that the payment had been returned and also recalled the payment which meant that the money left Martin's bank account in error. This error arose as the Department had not updated the returned payments to its account, and therefore believed that Martin had received the payment. The department apologised to Anne for the error and refunded the money it had incorrectly retrieved. It also agreed to pay a Carer's Support Grant of €1,850 to Anne's family as a goodwill gesture but also as Martin would have met the conditions of that Grant before his death. In another instance, 'Fiona' had a poor experience in the Coombe Hospital in Dublin when her child was born and was extremely upset and felt traumatised by the experience. While she had initially raised concerns with the hospital ended up making a formal complaint to the hospital two years later. However, the hospital refused to deal with the matter as it was outside the time limit for making complaints. The Heath Act, 2004, includes a 12-month time limit for making complaints. However, it also provides for the extension of the time limit where special circumstances make it appropriate to do so. The Ombudsman queried whether the hospital had considered using its discretion in this case. In response, the hospital offered to meet Fiona who wanted a written response. According to the report, the hospital issued a comprehensive and empathetic letter which Fiona felt resolved the issues for her. The Ombudsman raised a similar issue to Fiona's in his annual report for 2023. Ot has led him to call on all public bodies - particularly those in the health sector - to be mindful that some people may not be in a position to make a complaint within a specific timeframe for a variety of reasons, including feeling upset or traumatised. In such cases he said the body should consider using its discretion to deal with the complaint. 'Andrew' contacted the Ombudsman when his mother's belongings, including her dentures and shoes, went missing during her time in St Vincent's University Hospital, Dublin. The hospital told him that it had no record of the items being with his mother when she was admitted. However, the Ombudsman discovered evidence that both the woman's dentures and shoes were with her when she was in the hospital. An initial report from the hospital's speech and language therapist showed that Andrew's mother had no issues eating, while a subsequent report highlighted that she was having difficulty eating and was missing some teeth. The Ombudsman also uncovered a therapist's report that said she had difficulty "putting on her shoes". The hospital apologised to Andrew and his mother and reimbursed them for the value of the items lost.
The Irish Sun
4 days ago
- Business
- The Irish Sun
Child Benefit latest as Calleary confirms €140 payment for 6,186 children abroad amid ‘targeted' cash plan for thousands
THE Minister for Social Protection has confirmed Child Benefit is paid in respect of 6,186 children who are residing outside of the State. Minister EU regulations set out that a country where a person is employed is "generally responsible" for paying family benefits. This includes when the family resides in another Responding to READ MORE IN MONEY The "Child Benefit can also be claimed for children aged 16, 17 and 18 if they are in full-time education or training or have a disability and cannot support themselves. "Under EU regulations, Child Benefit is considered a 'Family Benefit'. "The country where a person is employed (their 'country of employment') is generally responsible for paying family benefits, even if the family resides in another EU or EEA state." MOST READ ON THE IRISH SUN He confirmed that, as of April 30th, Child Benefit was being paid to 3,381 customers in respect of 6,186 non-resident children. Little known social welfare benefits thousands are entitled to The country with the highest number of non-resident children whose parents or guardians are entitled to benefit is the Calleary confirmed 1,310 parents receive the payment in respect of 2,695 kids living outside in the UK. Some 685 parents or guardians receive the payment in respect of 1,320 children living in Other countries where children whose parents or guardians receive the payment are Lithuania, Croatia, Spain, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czech Republic, Italy, Greece, Estonia, Belgium, Finland, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany and Austria. CHILD BENEFIT PAY DATES THERE are four Child Benefit payments left in the year. 5th August - may be paid early due to August Bank Holiday 2nd September 7th October 4th November It comes after a second-tier Child Benefit worth an average of €285 per month was identified as a "key solution" to lift thousands out of poverty. The And a "second-tier" allowance would allow lower-income families to top up the existing €140-a-month benefit. The call comes after a report from the Economic and Social Research Institute confirmed that child-related benefits have lifted over 150,000 children out of poverty so far. 'TARGETED' PAYMENT PLAN THE Programme for Government states that it is "committed And last month, the Department of Social Protection told The Irish Sun that the Government is exploring a The Programme for Government vows to introduce Pay Related Parents Benefit, explore the extension of Parents Leave, continue to "support families with cost of raising their family through the Child Benefit payment" and increase core welfare payments. It also outlines plans for a "targeted" Child Benefit payment. A spokesperson for the Department of Social Protection told The Irish Sun: "The Programme for Government commitments relating to Child Benefit are to: "Continue to support families with the cost of raising their family through the Child Benefit payment, and "Explore a targeted Child Benefit payment and examine the interaction this would have with existing targeted supports to reduce Child Poverty such as the Working Family Payment and Child Support Payment. "The Department is working to advance these commitments and, in any event, schemes, including Child Benefit, are kept under review in the context of the annual budget process." The study, published as part of the ESRI's Budget Perspectives 2026 series, evaluated the impact of existing benefits on child poverty. Karina Doorley, Associate Research Professor at the ESRI, said child-related benefits are a "powerful tool" in reducing poverty. She added: "Well-targeted reforms to the system of child-related benefits could further improve outcomes for children and families currently experiencing poverty. "A second tier of Child Benefit could be a key part of that solution." Child Benefit is a A second tier of the The new payment shake-up would cost the government approximately €772 million each year, according to the ESRI. 1 Child Benefit is a universal payment worth €140 per child each month Credit: Getty Images - Getty
Dublin Live
13-06-2025
- Business
- Dublin Live
Social welfare Ireland: Well over 100,000 families to get lump sum payment next month
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Well over 100,000 families will see a lump sum in respect of each child paid out next month. Applications opened this week for the Back To School Clothing and Footwear Allowance, but many people will see it land in their accounts automatically. The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance provides a once-off payment to eligible families towards the cost of school clothing and footwear. The rate of payment for 2025 is €160 for children aged 4-11 and €285 for children aged 12 years and over in second level education. The majority of payments will be paid automatically with no application required. The Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance will be paid automatically to more than 114,000 families in respect of approximately 197,000 children during the week beginning 14th July 2025. The Department of Social Protection is currently processing these payments and families will receive confirmation informing them of their automatic entitlement on their MyWelfare account or by post. This will result in approximately €42 million being paid to these families during the week beginning 14th July. Families who do not receive notification from the Department of an automated payment should make an application online on even if they received a payment last year. Online applications can be made from Monday, 9th June. The Department is providing dedicated phone lines 071-9193318 and 0818-11-11-13 to answer enquiries relating to the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance during usual business hours Monday to Friday from 9.00am to 5.00pm. People also have the choice of emailing the Department at bscfa@ if they have an enquiry regarding their application or entitlement. The closing date to apply for this year's Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is 30th September 2025. Commenting this week, Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary said: 'I am delighted to announce that the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance for 2025 opens for applications today. I recognise the pressure that families are under in relation to back-to-school costs and have secured €54.4 million for the scheme this year. 'More than 75% of payments under this scheme will be paid without the need to make an application. My Department will issue automatic payments to more than 114,000 families in July and I would urge all families to check their eligibility for this important scheme.' Further information on the eligibility criteria for the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is available at Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
Irish Daily Mirror
13-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Daily Mirror
Applications now open to parents for social welfare payment worth €285 per child
Applications for the 2025 Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance are now open for eligible households all around the country. The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is a once-off social welfare payment made to eligible families to assist them with the cost of sending their children back to school. The rate of payment for 2025 is €160 for children aged 4 - 11 and €285 for children aged 12 years and over in second-level education. Students aged between 18 - 22 years must be returning to full-time second-level education in a recognised school or college in the autumn of 2025 to retain an entitlement to the payment. Some €54 million has been secured for the scheme this year, with more than 114,000 families, in respect of approximately 197,000 children, set to receive the automatically-paid allowance on the week beginning July 14 to help them with the cost of school uniforms and footwear. The Department of Social Protection is currently processing these payments and recipients will receive confirmation informing them of their automatic entitlement, on their MyWelfare account or by post. Families who do not receive notification from the Department of an automated payment are being urged to make an application online on even if they received a payment last year. Online applications are now open and the closing date to apply for this year's Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is September 30. Commenting on the scheme, Minister for Social Protection, Dara Calleary TD, said: 'I am delighted to announce that the Back-to-School Clothing and Footwear Allowance for 2025 opens for applications today. 'I recognise the pressure that families are under in relation to back-to-school costs and have secured €54.4 million for the scheme this year. 'More than 75 per cent of payments under this scheme will be paid without the need to make an application. My Department will issue automatic payments to more than 114,000 families in July and I would urge all families to check their eligibility for this important scheme.' To qualify for Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance, you must meet the following conditions:
Irish Examiner
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Cianan Brennan: Why didn't government admit its error with biometric public services cards?
Six years ago, the Data Protection Commission (DPC) went mano-a-mano with the government of the day over the infamous public services card, and ended up in a long legal war of attrition. That battle involved a simple question: Could the card be used as a catch-all portal for citizens accessing the State's services, regardless of their wishes? That particular spat was more than a little unedifying, ending up in a wholesale climbdown on the part of the Department of Social Protection in December 2021. However, yesterday's decision by the commission to fine the department €550,000 and order it to suspend the biometric processing of the public's data via the card should be even more seismic. €550,000 is five times the amount of the next-largest fine for breach of GDPR by a public body, and more than half of the maximum allowable. Puzzling defence of the indefensible Six years is a long time, however, and the world is a different place now. This time round, the State may be more willing to take its punishment from its own regulator. That in itself would be borderline farcical. The government — former social protection minister Regina Doherty being probably the most noteworthy culprit — argued for years that the card did not carry biometric data, despite it being plainly obvious to anyone with common sense that it did — in this case, a photo used for facial matching. Why did the State spend hundreds of thousands of euro in taxpayers' money defending the indefensible? The answer may be because it couldn't afford not to. Why did it do so? Because it couldn't afford not to. Having stated until it was blue in the face that black was indeed white, to change tack in any way would have been legally disastrous. Why the government of the day couldn't just hold its hands up and admit fault in the first place, rather than spending hundreds of thousands of euro in taxpayers' money defending the indefensible, we may never definitively know. However, we can speculate. The card is deeply ingrained in Irish society now, but that wasn't the case to quite the same extent in 2019. Furthermore, back then GDPR was brand new. It was so new that the initial investigation into the public service card was carried out under Ireland's previous Data Protection Act. Under that act, the commission had far fewer teeth to impose fines. GDPR is now a firmly embedded, if not universally beloved, EU policy. Maybe in 2019 it was felt the time wasn't right for the government to eat crow on its ambitious biometric card venture. Range of views in data protection community Those we polled yesterday across Ireland's niche data protection community had different views as to whether or not the Government, in the guise of the Department of Social Protection, will go the legal route once more. One said: The circumstances have changed. The data protection and GDPR landscape is much clearer now than it was under the old act. 'It seems more likely than not that this is one that won't be challenged, at least not in court.' However, there was little consensus. 'For years, they [the department] have been shouting that there is no biometric data on the card. Now this decision from the regulator is unequivocal that there is. Can they really back down from that? Would that be in character?' a second expert asked. DPC will defend its decision 'very robustly' Should the Government press the nuclear button once more and appeal the decision to the courts, deciding commissioner Dale Sutherland has made it clear that 'we will very robustly defend our decision'. He said: We are well used to this. It is a feature of our system. There are other puzzling aspects to yesterday's decision, not least the sheer length of time it took. The biometrics investigation had been set in train even before the 2019 decision, which dealt specifically with whether or not the government had the right to make the card mandatory for public services such as passport applications, yet it was only officially commenced in July of 2021. It then took four more years to complete, during which time the card has become ever more embedded in Irish society. That is surely an inordinate amount of time to take over a key investigation concerning personal data. 'This was a complex inquiry with complex issues,' Mr Sutherland said. 'The resources these inquiries take are just extraordinary. This one took a bit of time,' he added, while allowing 'it's probably a bit longer than we would have liked'. Digital Rights Ireland, whose initial complaint spurred the investigations back in 2017, professed itself 'concerned' at the length of time it had taken to finalise the probe. A spokesperson added that the decision 'leaves the Government in a very serious situation', given it has spent 'hundreds of millions of euro on an illegal public service card project'. Mr Sutherland stressed, however, that 'the important thing is that it [the investigation] is done now'. Asked whether the world had moved on in the last six years, he said: 'The principles haven't.'
