O'Dea, Willie

National Internship Scheme Placements

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: the classifications of employment which have been prohibited from utilising the JobBridge scheme; the number of positions which have been removed by her Department from the JobBridge scheme; the ki...

This question is with regard to information recently publicised in the national media about certain positions being withdrawn from the JobBridge scheme.

National Internship Scheme Placements (Continued)

We are all aware that schools have to resort to desperate measures in some circumstances because of the huge cutbacks in the education sector over the past four years. Does the Minister of State a...

On the general question of JobBridge, I do not deny there have been some successes; I freely concede that. I acknowledge that some of those schemes operate to the benefit of schools. Nevertheless...

It is positive - with exceptions.

The Minister of State is suggesting that we ignore the abuse. He should publish the names of the people caught exploiting the scheme.

Data Protection

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: the responsibility her Department accepts in the circumstances where private investigators accessed social protection information in breach of data protection; and if she will make a statement on t...

This question arises from recent legal proceedings in which private investigators were convicted of breach of the data protection legislation by using confidential information which they got from t...

Data Protection (Continued)

I share the Tánaiste's concern about the conduct of those credit unions. I congratulate the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner on this successful prosecution. I was interested to hear the...

I accept the Tánaiste's remarks about the legislation, but credit unions are prohibited by legislation from using PPS numbers in the way they were used in this case. Once PPS numbers are given out...

It would not be easy, but has anything been done as a result of this case? Private investigators posing as public officials rang the Department, gave people's PPS numbers, which they should not ...

Social Welfare Payments Administration

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: how the Department’s policy to migrate to electronic payments affects the Government’s stated objective of protecting the post office network; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

I tabled this question to ascertain how the Government can reconcile its repeated commitments to preserve the post office network as we know it with the headlong rush to an electronic payment syste...

Nobody in the Government has contradicted the opinion of the Irish Postmasters Union, which clearly states a move to electronic payments in the timescale envisaged by the Government, which is by 20...

Leaders' Questions (Continued)

I do not believe he answered the second one either.

Irish Water: Motion [Private Members] (Continued)

I thank Deputy Cowen for tabling this motion. A total of 750,000 people in the country, that is one in six, live below the poverty line. Hundreds of thousands more are struggling just barely abov...

It is opaque, distant and even disinterested.

I will give the House some examples of my interaction with Irish Water to illustrate what I am saying. Some time ago I telephoned Irish Water with a simple query. I am lucky enough to own a sec...

Undeterred by my failure in that regard, because of countless constituents who have queried why they need to submit their PPS numbers, I contacted Irish Water again with a simple question. Why d...

Undeterred by my failure at verbal communication, I sent an e-mail and got a response back late last night that stated, "The PPS numbers have to be submitted to ensure that correct water allowances...

The Revenue Commissioners, who collect tax in this country, take people on trust. A person fills out a tax return outlining his or her circumstances. In most cases that will not be examined as ...

The Minister ought to be aware of a court case in the past three weeks where two people were successfully prosecuted and convicted for obtaining information from the Department of Social Protecti...

I have received no coherent explanation from Irish Water as to why I, as a citizen, should submit my PPS number and I have absolutely no intention of doing so. At the end of the day, when I get ...

In addition I made a further effort to get information on this by tabling a parliamentary question to the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Kelly, who is sittin...

It gives rise to a number of very interesting questions. Is that the Minister's version of accountability?

Is that his version of the democratic revolution for which people voted in such numbers in the last general election? I remember a grandiose statement from the programme for Government: "We believ...

I have no doubt the Minister in his speech will refer to the hoary old chestnut the Taoiseach always drags up when he is asked about this - that Fianna Fáil signed some sort of a deal with the tr...

I cannot remember exactly the amount because it seems to change every time he answers the question. However, the Minister should remember that nobody signed up with the troika for somebody on the ...

The system is broken. The man who brought the legislation through the Dáil told the Minister that. I urge him to fix it, but I must say my confidence is not great.

Fuel Allowance Payments

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: if her attention has been drawn to the persistence of fuel poverty here; if she will enhance the fuel allowance in order to combat this poverty; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

Rent Supplement Scheme Data

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: the number of persons that are currently in receipt of rent allowance; the number of persons that have been transferred from rent allowance to housing assistance payment under the pilot project whi...

Household Benefits Scheme

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: if her attention has been drawn to the fact that a number of elderly persons have been compelled to abandon security systems within their homes due to the abolition of the telephone allowance; her ...

Social Insurance Rates

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: if she will address the PRSI anomaly resulting in lower paid workers taking home less pay when they earn more; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

Social Insurance

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: the actions she will take to include the self-employed under State social insurance; the number of self-employed persons here; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

Rent Supplement Scheme Administration

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: the actions she will take to ensure that landlords accept tenants who are in receipt of rent supplement; if her attention has been drawn to the high number of persons refused tenancy as a result of...

Unemployment Levels

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: if she is satisfied with her Department’s actions in ensuring that those in long-term unemployment are supported by her Department in their attempts to return to the workforce; the number of long-t...

Free Travel Scheme Review

Asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection: if she will provide an update on the review of the free travel pass scheme; the annual expenditure on the scheme since 2011; those in possession of free travel passes since 2011 broken down in tabu...

Employment Rights

Asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: the number of allegations of bogus self-employment or subcontracting that have been made to the National Employment Rights Authority over the past five years; the number that were investigated; the...

Departmental Investigations

Asked the Minister for Education and Skills: when an investigation was carried out into employment conditions at a site (details supplied); the person who carried it out; the issues that were investigated; if bogus sub-contracting and underpa...

Homelessness Strategy

Asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government: the actions he has taken to address the homeless crisis here; the actions he will take to ensure homelessness is ended within two years; and if he will make a statement on the matter.