Questions

494. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of persons whose social welfare payment was suspended or terminated following imprisonment in each of the past five years; the number whose qualified adult or child increases continued to be paid to another person; the number of such cases involving non-Irish nationals; and the number involving persons who had previously acquired Irish citize…

495. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of persons who became Irish citizens in each of the past five years who subsequently received social welfare payments and were subsequently imprisoned; what payments they were receiving immediately prior to imprisonment; whether those payments ceased, were suspended or continued for dependants; and the total value of payments made to their de…

496. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of international protection applicants who, while in receipt of a social welfare payment or dependent-related payment, entered prison in each of the past five years; what happened to each payment during imprisonment; the number transferred to a spouse, partner or other dependent; and the total annual cost involved. [71925/26]

505. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of disability allowance claims reduced or closed in each of the years 2020 to 2025 and to date in 2026 due to capital arising from an inheritance; the number of those recipients who subsequently lost entitlement to the free travel pass as a result; if his Department collects this data; if not, the reason; and if he will make a statement on th…

521. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 65399/26 of 16 September 2026, which compared the back to school clothing and footwear allowance against uniform costs alone, whether his Department has assessed the cost of school footwear, sports clothing and other required clothing alongside uniforms; the basis for the conclusion that the allowance compares favou…

774. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 62815/26 of 7 September 2026, if his Department will now undertake an assessment of the average cost incurred by families in preparing a child to return to school, measured against the value of the back to school clothing and footwear allowance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [65399/26]

1251. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection whether his Department records the number of persons accessing Rent Supplement under the domestic violence fast-track arrangements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43255/26]

1252. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection whether his Department records the number of persons accessing the Travel Supplement protocol introduced for victims of domestic violence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43256/26]

1253. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection whether any performance indicators exist to assess the effectiveness of emergency income supports provided to persons fleeing domestic violence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43257/26]

1254. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection whether he intends to introduce a mechanism to record the uptake, outcomes and processing times associated with domestic violence-related emergency income supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43258/26]

1255. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection whether any assessment has been undertaken regarding the proportion of persons presenting as homeless following domestic abuse who subsequently access social protection emergency supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43259/26]

410. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of applications made under the back-to-work enterprise allowance scheme in each year from 2020 to 2025, broken down by broad business category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40887/26]

411. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of applications approved under the back-to-work enterprise allowance scheme in each year from 2020 to 2025 relating to beauticians, nail bars, barber shops, vape shops, smoke shops, mobile phone retail or repair shops, and similar personal-service or retail businesses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40888/26]

412. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection if his Department categorises or records the types of businesses established under the back-to-work enterprise allowance scheme by sector or business activity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40889/26]

413. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of applications under the back-to-work enterprise allowance scheme relating to vape shops, smoke shops or nicotine-related retail businesses in each year from 2020 to 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40890/26]

414. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection if an assessment has been undertaken regarding trends in the types of businesses being established under the back-to-work enterprise allowance scheme over the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40891/26]

353. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the total expenditure to date on the accommodation recognition payment scheme; the number of recipients currently in receipt of the payment; and the projected cost of the scheme to March 2027 under current policy. [33607/26]

557. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the supports available to households where a family member requires continuous electrically powered medical equipment, including oxygen machines, resulting in substantially increased electricity bills; if additional supports are available through the exceptional needs payment system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31912/26]

559. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of exceptional needs payments issued in each of the past three years to assist households with electricity costs; the total expenditure incurred; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31914/26]

560. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will consider the introduction of a dedicated support payment or allowance for households where a person is medically dependent on continuous electrically powered medical equipment such as oxygen concentrators; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31915/26]

1862. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection whether any assessment has been carried out on the feasibility of introducing real-time residency verification, including the use of exit-entry data or airline passenger data, to ensure that payments do not continue to issue to persons no longer resident in the State; and if he will provide the outcome of any such assessment. [24545/26]

1863. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection to quantify the average duration for which a payment continues to issue after a recipient ceases to satisfy the habitual residence condition before detection occurs; and the estimated financial exposure arising from this delay. [24546/26]

1864. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection to explain the increase in child benefit overpayments arising from absence from the State between 2023 and 2025; and to outline the specific control or enforcement measures introduced during this period to address this trend. [24547/26]

1865. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection the percentage of overpayments arising from absence from the State that are ultimately recovered in full; the average recovery timeframe; and the proportion written off or unrecovered. [24548/26]

1866. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Social Protection to provide details of any internal audit or compliance review carried out since 2022 specifically examining payments issued to persons no longer resident in the State, including any control weaknesses identified and corrective actions taken. [24549/26]