Written Answers Nos. 81-100Employment Rights 81. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister of State at the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Pat Breen): Specifically in relation to Sectoral Employment Orders, Section 19 of the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2015 provides that once enacted by the Oireachtas, the terms and conditions relating to the remuneration and any sick pay scheme or pension scheme set out in the Sectoral Employment Agreement will apply to every worker of the class, type or group in the economic sector in relation to which the Order was made and to the employers of such workers regardless of whether the employer is an agency or a construction firm. Queries in relation to the application of a Sectoral Employment Order fall under the remit of Adjudication Service of the Workplace Relations Commission and ultimately the Labour Court. Work Permits Applications 82. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Frances Fitzgerald): However, the Employment Permits Section informs me that the applicant has submitted a new application for a Critical Skills Employment Permit which was placed in the processing queue on the 31/08/2017 and this new application will be considered in line with the provisions of the Employment Permits Acts. They are currently processing applications for standard employers received on the 21/08/2017 and it is anticipated that a decision will issue for this new within the next 2-3 weeks. Enterprise Support Schemes 83. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan 84. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Frances Fitzgerald): As was announced previously, my Department will be commissioning an independent review of the Succeed-in-Ireland programme. That review, which will be carried out after details of the initiative’s full and final costs are available, will equip us with a thorough understanding of the programme’s results and its contribution to employment generation in the State. This is in the interests of good governance and ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. On 20 April my Department launched a public consultation calling for observations on the draft terms of reference for that review. The consultation period ended on 26 May. I am pleased that the consultation process elicited 17 different submissions. The responses that we received came from a broad range of stakeholders, including public representatives and the general public. The terms of reference for the review will be finalised in due course. My Department is completing the examination of all the responses to the public consultation, a process which will help to shape the final text. The submissions will be published after the terms of reference are finalised. Ticket Touting 85. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Frances Fitzgerald): Legislative Measures 86. Deputy Niall Collins Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy Frances Fitzgerald): In order to ensure that information regarding such vacancies is widely disseminated, and therefore made available to the largest cohort of job seekers possible, the LMNT stipulates that the information is made available on three platforms – the jobsireland/EURES website, in a local newspaper or on a website appropriate to the type of vacancy involved, and in a national newspaper in order to ensure that information is made available in a commonly accessed platform with a nationwide reach. Information regarding the vacancy should be available on these platforms for two weeks prior to an application for an employment permit being submitted; this ensures that any Irish or EEA nationals who wish to submit an application to fill the vacancy have an opportunity to do so, while not imposing a significant delay on the employer’s hiring process. I have no plans, at this time, to review the structure of the LMNT. Financial Services Ombudsman Remit 87. Deputy Pearse Doherty Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): However, the FSO has informed me that, on receipt of a complaint, he reviews the complaint to assess whether it may be one which falls under the scope of the Central Bank Examination. If it is, the FSO writes to the financial services provider and requests confirmation of the status of the mortgage loan account by reference to the Examination. Where it is confirmed by the financial services provider that a mortgage loan account is considered to be within the scope of the Examination, the FSO is of the view that the best way of ensuring that he has all of the necessary information to deal with such complaints is to await the outcome of the Examination. For this reason, the FSO considers it necessary to place these complaints on hold pending confirmation of the impact, if any, of the Examination on those mortgage loan accounts. The FSO does not have any oversight function with respect to the manner in which the financial services providers are conducting their Tracker Mortgage Examinations. The Central Bank of Ireland has laid down the Framework for the Tracker Mortgage Examination and the phases for a Bank to complete including Central Bank assurances that must be completed as part of that process. I understand from the Central Bank that it invoked its powers under Section 22 of the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Act to set specific timelines for lenders to complete Phase 2 (the “Review Phase”) of the Examination and in line with those timelines, the Bank expect the vast majority of impacted customers to be identified by lenders by end September 2017. As the lenders’ reviews are subject to assurance work by the Central Bank, it is possible that additional impacted accounts may be identified after this date. The Central Bank has and continues to challenge lenders through a combination of bilateral engagements and on-site assurance work to ensure that this Review Phase is completed as quickly and accurately as possible. The Central Bank has clearly articulated its expectations of lenders to provide appropriate redress and compensation to all impacted customers in line with prescribed principles for redress developed by the Central Bank. The timeframes for progression of the redress and compensation programmes vary from lender to lender, however, the Central Bank remains focussed on challenging lenders to ensure that they are progressing redress and compensation and that impacted customers are treated fairly. Some lenders have already commenced redress and compensation programmes and these programmes, along with the Central Bank’s assurance work, will continue beyond September 2017 for some lenders. Lenders are also required to establish a dedicated unit to deal with any queries, complaints, and/or concerns that customers may have during the course of the Examination. The unit must continue to be available to deal with such queries, complaints and/or concerns for at least 6 months after the four phases of the Examination have been completed and until all complaints have been adjudicated on. The Central Bank will continue to engage with lenders in respect of the conduct of the Examination and will consider appropriate supervisory action, up to and including enforcement action, where necessary. I understand that a further update on the Examination will issue in October 2017. When the Examination is over in respect of each complainant, the FSO will resume their investigation of those complaints which complainants want to pursue. Financial Services Ombudsman Administration 88. Deputy Pearse Doherty Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): However, the Financial Services Ombudsman has informed me that he received 4,513 complaints in 2016. Of these 1,504 were submitted through the online complaint form. It is the Financial Service Ombudsman’s experience with online complaint forms that they are user friendly and a convenient method for consumers to submit their complaint. I understand that there have occasionally been minor technical issues; the Financial Service Ombudsman confirms that these would be a low in number (less than 1% of complaint forms submitted) and when they were identified, these issues were resolved usually within the same day. The Financial Services Ombudsman is not aware of any complaint forms lost as a result of the online system; once a complaint form is submitted, it is retrievable in the system. Tax Yield 89. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): Credit Availability 90. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): Interest Rates 91. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): As would be expected for projects of this nature, there may be a small participation in equity upside if projects are successful so that Activate, and by extension taxpayers, share in any gains alongside the project promoter. Given that Activate Capital has private shareholders, it would not be appropriate to disclose the Fund’s commercially sensitive information, including the interest rates charged on specific projects. This approach is in line with standard commercial confidentiality principles applying to all private companies. Activate is focused on lending to private residential development projects in Ireland’s main urban centres. The majority of housing units funded by Activate are aimed at the starter home market and, in accordance with legislative requirements, 10% of units are set aside by Activate’s developer customers to meet Part V social and affordable housing requirements. Activate does not utilise Development Management Agreements as an element of its lending terms. Tracker Mortgage Examination 92. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): As part of the Examination framework, where customer detriment is identified, the Central Bank has clearly articulated its expectations of lenders to provide appropriate redress and compensation to impacted customers in line with its prescribed Principles for Redress. Key elements of the Central Bank’s expectations in respect of redress and compensation for impacted customers include: - any harm is stopped at the earliest possible time after each group of impacted customers is identified; - the interest rates applied to impacted customers’ accounts revert to the appropriate tracker interest rate or impacted customers are given the opportunity to revert to such a rate where relevant; - redress will be provided to impacted customers to return them to the position they would have been in had lenders’ failures not occurred; - reasonable compensation, that reflects the detriment suffered by individual customers, is provided; - redress and compensation is to be paid to impacted customers up front at the point of offer and compensation cannot be reduced by virtue of a customer lodging an appeal; - an additional payment is to be provided to impacted customers at the point of offer to enable them to take independent professional advice regarding the redress and compensation offers made to them - it can be noted that this payment is to be made up-front and is not conditional on the customer obtaining financial advice; - an independent appeals process is to be established to address complaints from customers who are dissatisfied with any aspect of the redress and compensation package that they receive from lenders; and - lenders will undertake not to raise any time limit defences that may otherwise apply if impacted customers make complaints to the Financial Services Ombudsman (the “FSO”) or initiate proceedings before the courts. The appeals element of the Principles for Redress ensures that customers have an option to challenge any aspect of the redress and compensation package, which is additional to the options of bringing a complaint to the FSO or initiating court proceedings. Each lender is responsible for designing and executing their individual redress and compensation programmes in line with the Principles for Redress. The Central Bank advises that, as far as possible, it is challenging lenders' compensation proposals to ensure that customers receive appropriate compensation. However, as it would constitute specific supervisory information, the Central Bank is not in a position to comment on redress and compensation programmes put in place by individual lenders due to the confidentiality requirements of Central Bank legislation. Insurance Compensation Fund 93. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): As you are aware, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment on 25 May 2017 and overturned the previous decisions of the High Court and the Court of Appeal that the Motor Insurers’ Bureau of Ireland (MIBI) is liable in respect of third party motor insurance claims made against the policyholders of Setanta Insurance. The consequence of this is that the Insurance Compensation Fund (ICF) has been deemed responsible for the payment of such third party claims. As the judgment has been delivered, the process of making payments in accordance with the provisions of the Insurance Act, 1964, as amended, has commenced. Payments can only be made out of the ICF, with the approval of the High Court and only if it appears to the High Court that it is unlikely that the claim can be met otherwise than from the ICF. If satisfied, the High Court can order payments out of the ICF up to 65% (or €825,000, whichever is the lesser) due to relevant claimants. In this regard, an Order was granted in the High Court on Monday 24 July 2017 in relation to 324 claims which were subsequently paid by the Office of the Accountant of the Courts of Justice. The total value paid out of the ICF in relation to those claimants was €6.5 million being 65% of the total value of the settled claims in accordance with the legislation. The liquidator for Setanta Insurance has informed me that as of 31 August 2017, there are 1,576 active claims, of these 573 claimants have been paid compensation from the ICF subject to the 65%/€825,000 limits. The liquidator continues to work through claims to be included in the next application to the High Court scheduled to be made in February 2018 in accordance with the legislation. The Liquidator commissioned actuarial consultants, Willis Towers Watson, to carry out an analysis of Setanta Insurance's claims reserves as at 30 June 2017 and this has now been completed. The report estimates the claims reserves at between €105.9 million and €112.9 million. This is an increase from the first report in 2014, which estimated the claims reserves at between €87.7 million and €95.2 million. A consequence of this is that based on this actuarial report, the liquidator now estimates that he will not be in a position to meet more than 22% of the claims out of the assets of the liquidation once all matters in the liquidation have been concluded, rather than the not more than 30% of claims figure previously indicated. My Department is currently considering the implications of this actuarial report. In addition, you should note as previously indicated that there is also a legal concern that any Government intervention could undermine the priority status of claimants in the liquidation. The Department of Finance is therefore seeking legal advice on the impact on the State's ability to recover from the liquidated company if it were to compensate third party claimants. State Aid Investigations 94. Deputy Michael McGrath Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): VAT Yield 95. Deputy Róisín Shortall Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): Tax Yield 96. Deputy Niall Collins Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): These figures are estimates from the Revenue tax forecasting model using latest actual data for the year 2015, adjusted as necessary for income, self-employment and employment trends in the interim. They are estimated by reference to 2018 incomes and are provisional and may be revised. However, I understand that the Deputy’s question relates to a reference by An Taoiseach to the higher rate of income tax in France not becoming payable until income exceeds €150,000. A relevant point to note in this regard is that the French tax system includes a range of four rates of income tax applying over a number of income bands, in contrast to the current two rates of income tax (not including Universal Social Charge) in Ireland. The entry point into the highest generally-applying band of taxation on income in Ireland is currently €70,044, the point from with the 8% rate of USC becomes payable. Tax Yield 97. Deputy Róisín Shortall Minister for Finance (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): Departmental Staff Recruitment 98. Deputy John Brassil Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (Deputy Paschal Donohoe): I understand from PAS that they use verbal and numerical reasoning tests, alongside other assessment tools including interview, for Civil Service roles such as Clerical Officer. The reason for using these types of test is that there is a very significant body of international research which provides evidence that they are the most effective techniques to predict job performance. Competitions advertised by PAS are open to all applicants including people with disabilities who fulfil the eligibility requirements set out at that time. PAS carefully considers all requests for reasonable accommodation. In considering such requests, PAS is conscious of the rights of people with disabilities and of the obligations on PAS to observe those rights and to act in accordance with the provisions of the relevant equality legislation. To assist PAS in considering request for reasonable accommodations in a fair and balanced way, candidates are asked to submit evidence in support of their request. PAS will consider letters or reports from relevant professionals which clearly indicate the severity and the type of accommodation(s) that may be relevant to the person. For example, candidates may be afforded extra time and/or alternative formats if assessment tests are part of the selection process. Student Grant Scheme Payments 99. Deputy Pat Deering Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Richard Bruton): Budget 2011 provided for a number of student grant measures which came into effect for the 2011/12 academic year, including the change in the assessment of the qualifying distance criterion for the non-adjacent rate of grant from 24 kilometres to 45 kilometres. The 24 km distance criterion was originally set in 1968 and had not been updated in more than 40 years. Since then, significant improvements have taken place in the road and rail network and it is considered that the revised distance criteria is more consistent with the type of distances that students may legitimately be expected to commute to college. The current qualifying distance of 45 km for the higher non-adjacent rate of student grant takes into account a reasonable radius within which students may commute on a daily basis. Students in third-level institutions experiencing exceptional financial need can apply for support under the Student Assistance Fund. This Fund assists students, in a sensitive and compassionate manner, who might otherwise be unable to continue their third level studies due to their financial circumstances. Information on the fund is available through the Access Officer in the third level institution attended. This fund is administered on a confidential, discretionary basis. Broadband Service Provision 100. Deputy Thomas Byrne Minister for Education and Skills (Deputy Richard Bruton): Under the current programme the Department continually reviews the availability of services and upgrades schools where the opportunity arises, in line with contractual and budgetary requirements. The most recent drawdown from the Framework of Providers of Broadband Services saw some 1,100 primary schools awarded download speeds of 30 Mbps or greater (the baseline download speed required under the National Broadband Plan). Some 900 of those schools have now been connected with the balance to be in place by the end of 2017. The policy of this Department is to offer the best quality connectivity to all schools in line with the technical solutions available in the market and financial constraints. Broadband capacity can vary due to geographical location and local infrastructure, and thus impact on the service that can be provided. The need to improve broadband connectivity to primary schools is recognised in the Digital Strategy for Schools 2015-2020. An interdepartmental working group has been established to determine how best to provide enhanced broadband connectivity to primary schools in collaboration with the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment to the National Broadband Plan and the Intervention Strategy, and proposed industry provision. In the case of the school referred, the Broadband Service Desk and the current provider, Imagine/Magnet, have reviewed the service provided, and they advise that the school is on the best available broadband solution currently available at present. |
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