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08/08/2012
Minister Denies Any Changes To Disability Allowance Criteria
Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton has denied that changes have been made to eligibility criteria for disability allowances that would make it more difficult for people to qualify.
The minister said “nothing underhand is going on” in the department and there had been “absolutely no change in criteria or conditions”. Adding that the increase in refusals was due to the increase in the number of people applying.
However, the Opposition has responded by saying her comments yesterday had continued to “mislead” people and there were still high refusal rates.
Fianna Fáil social protection spokesman Willie O’Dea said there had been a surge in rejections for the allowance and families were facing delays of up to 12 months in processing applications.
“The facts are there for all to see: three out of every five applications for disability allowance have been rejected since the start of this year,” he said. “Between January and April, the Department of Social Protection turned down 4,823 applications. The Minister’s response to my concerns has been to say that the department is changing computer systems. I find this totally unacceptable.”
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The minister said “nothing underhand is going on” in the department and there had been “absolutely no change in criteria or conditions”. Adding that the increase in refusals was due to the increase in the number of people applying.
However, the Opposition has responded by saying her comments yesterday had continued to “mislead” people and there were still high refusal rates.
Fianna Fáil social protection spokesman Willie O’Dea said there had been a surge in rejections for the allowance and families were facing delays of up to 12 months in processing applications.
“The facts are there for all to see: three out of every five applications for disability allowance have been rejected since the start of this year,” he said. “Between January and April, the Department of Social Protection turned down 4,823 applications. The Minister’s response to my concerns has been to say that the department is changing computer systems. I find this totally unacceptable.”
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