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Updated at 10.40am
THE DEPARTMENT OF Social Protection will need extra resources to pay for management of the €100 household grant for Irish Water customers, RTÉ News has revealed this morning.
The broadcaster obtained a letter written by the Secretary General of the Department of Social Protection, under Freedom of Information rules.
In it, the official says Joan Burton’s department will need further resources, including more staff, to manage the payment to Irish Water customers.
The letter to the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform was written last November, RTÉ reports.
“…resourcing the processing/payment of WCG applications in 2015 and beyond needs to be addressed and cannot be accommodated from within the existing resource/admin budget allocation,” the letter says.
The Secretary General adds that it is “critical that we advance this project quickly”.
Additional funds would be needed to cover the cost of writing to every household in the country, and advertisements telling people how to apply.
New regime
Environment Minister Alan Kelly confirmed last November that every household in the country will be entitled to a €100 rebate from the Department of Social Protection if they sign up with the utility.
The Government’s revised charging scheme was announced in the wake of a series of large-scale public protests.
Independent TD Catherine Murphy said she wasn’t surprised at the revelations.
“Every household in the country that is a primary residence — that is people who are renting or people who are homeowners — has an entitlement to apply for this. That’s 1.65 million,” Murphy told Morning Ireland.
“The Government estimates that that 1.3 million households will apply for it. That’s a wider — as they would say themselves — client base than any other social welfare payment, and it was very obvious that there would be a need for extra resources within the department.”
Murphy said the set up of Irish Water had been “an absolute fiasco from beginning to end”.
In a statement, the Department of Social Protection said staff were “still assessing the resource requirements in respect of new initiatives for the payments system and work is ongoing”.
“Dealing with resource requirement issues is a routine feature of Government work. The Department processes approximately 85 million payments a year and anticipates no issues in processing the Water Conservation Grant.”
Junior Minister at the Department Kevin Humphreys said people needed to know how to claim the €100 payment, and that there was nothing unusual about the request from the Secretary General.
“I don’t see any excessive costs in this, but we’re in the process of making sure that we can make that payment in September,” he told RTÉ’s Sean O’Rourke.
He said that whatever resources were needed would be put in place, and that it would be done as cost-effectively as possible.
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Have yis nothing better to investigate ? The country is falling apart at the seams and you’re looking at vape shops ? Jesus wept…
@Regular John: Country is falling apart? Wtd are on about? Jesus fkin wept..
@Regular John: This is the Journal doing the dirty work of the anti vaping fraternity in this county, any day now another individual with a chip on his shoulder with vaping will be on “Newstalk” between the hours of 4 and 7pm weekdays banging on with more negativity regarding vaping.
@Ian: wtf are u on about?
@Leonard Barry: Vaping, specifically single use vapes should be banned. It’s an excuse for useless smokers who aren’t smart enough to stop.
@I’m a robot Robot:only uprising you’re dying is up rising ou the bed in the mornings to post this shi. The coolock gang holing hands with fenian hating orange men telling us about foreign took eeeer jerrrbs. Sad
@I’m a robot Robot: because you just can’t handle the world we live in, you want to start a revolution?
@I’m a robot Robot: It’s odd that, while the majority of murders in Ireland are committed by Irish people against Irish people, you seem to ignore those particular victims. Why is that ? Why would someone be so focused on crime committed by people with darker skin tones, yet completely ignore crime committed by those whose skin tone matches his own ? You’ll deny it, of course, but we all see you. We all know what you are.
@Ian: ponse
Oh ffs…seriously…are vapes the new crack! Undercover investigation, Irelands illicit vape market..WOW!:Banner headline news!
Well done Conor & Patricia…exposing this blight on society, these monsters must be stopped at any cost…give me a break!
@damien leen: phools and their money … no sympathy
In the Uk, you can attend stop smoking clinics in your doctors surgery with a nurse and they encourage you to vape instead of smoking. They advise you to buy your vape/juice from reputable sources, supermarkets, chain newsagents etc. It does make a difference. I spend about £2.50 a week on juice. At the weekly clinic they test your lung capacity to show you the difference after stopping using tobacco products. Craving goes too after a while. If you’re going to vape buy from reputable retailers.
@Ayo Reilly: Just stop smoking you lazy turd. It’s easy.
Did u happen to stop at any shop and see them selling cigarettes…wait no, that’s OK, they’ve taxed the crap out of them so that’s OK!
@Hugh McGanus: read that rubbish..life is for living u absolute melt!
@damien leen: life is for living and yet here you are whinging on a story you didn’t even read
Just ban the poxy things
Wow, out of all the issues effecting this country from why the health care system is on the brink to some of the most expensive insurance and utlilties with a poor return in many cases, and this is the big stort the journal goes after.
@Patrick Newell: the Bloomberg Foundation pays media outlets globally to spread vaping misinformation. Wonder if The Journal is in their pay? They should “investigate” that ;)
And how come the gardai can’t do an investigation and prosecuted before now?
More shock horror anti vaping nonsense from The Journal. Health warnings not in irish! Better value products over the tiny restrictive 2ml limit! The article tries to suggest that this market is unregulated but then goes on to quote the onerous EU TPD. Absolute storm in a teacup but damaging none the less as will discourage smokers from making the switch to a far safer product. Bottom line is don’t buy vapes in those dodgy stores. Those places sell all sorts of dodgy products from phones to toys. There are many specialist vape shops on the high street with knowledgeable staff to advise smokers looking to quit. The irony of this anti harm reduction campaign is that it will lead to taxing and further restrictions that will keep people smoking and create a far bigger black market.
@NoelDublin: Spot on.
Pretty sure there’s gonna be a huge increase in lung cancers and mouth and throat cancers in a few years time due to the excessive and extreme chemicals in these vapes.
You know there’s formaldehyde in these ? The same liquid funeral homes use to embalm dead bodies ?! Why would you want to inhale this? Great article highlighting the dangers of these vapes and showing just how easy they are to buy and the excessive toxic substances and volumes within them. These will kill you. !
@Unknown User: Pretty sure you’re lying. Name a single brand sold under EU regulations that contains formaldehyde? Just one. No?
@Unknown User: Evidence of your claims? None.
@Unknown User: Do you think that if you make up lies and post it in The Journal comment section people will believe you?
Bring into law that one can only buy a vape with a prescription
@Dr Albert S Meinheimer: bring in a law to make tobacco and cigarettes prescription only. Better no?
@NoelDublin: no because the vapes were originally designed to help quit smoking. A “healthy”alternative So let it be by prescription only
I started smoking cigarettes at 13.
I gave up at 42 when vapes came on the market 10 years ago.
I feel far much healthier now then ever. I save a fortune (€5 10 mil bottle) lasts me 3 days a pack of cigarettes around €17/18 would only last me a day. From what I read the jury is still out out on adults switching out and the health benefits.
I’ve never had so much as a cough since my last cigarette. I’m not speaking for everyone just my experience.
Monday Morning entertainment, brought to you by The Journal.
Who cares
Ireland’s biggest downfall is its ability to make rules but then never enforces them. Constantly hoping for good will. And every time something like this is highlighted as a problem the problem spouted from authorities is we need better education. We just don’t hold people to account for breaking the rules.
Bigger issues going on in this country than vapes. Far more serious but you choose to ignore them for this nonsense go away out of that
Laying the foundations for taxation of vapes
Get a life ffs
The journal should b done by the law for using kids to go out to the shops buying vapes and paying them peanuts and say they were undercover journalists for the journal to unsuspecting shopkeeper s have they no understanding of the illegally using kids as their Muppets I for one hope the law will do them so they won’t use these underhanded tactics again
@liam ward: the gards use kids to trap shop keepers selling alcohol to miners.
@Gavin Smartr: Surely they’re entitled to a drink after a hard day’s graft down the mine?
@Gavin Smartr: Mineral mining is among the world’s most hazardous occupations. It is especially dangerous in southern Africa, where mining activity is a leading cause of HIV and tuberculosis epidemics. Inside mines, silica dust exposure causes long-term pulmonary damage.
As a retailer that’s part of a well known franchise, we’re inspected constantly. Tobacco must be out of view, alcohol must be sectioned off, random age checks for any age restricted products, paperwork to be completed everyday,a mop for every area, a brush for every area,a separate sink for every possible thing that a sink is used for, they even check the cleaning chemicals we use and every chemical needs it’s own paperwork, if a temperature of a fridge is half a degree away from the recommended temperature it’s considered unsafe, we’re happy to implement all these rules and regulations as it does set a good standard, it’s just frustrating that these shops can put a display of bongs in their window yet if we use the wrong coloured cloth to wipe a surface we’re a danger to public health.
THE JOURNAL INVESTIGATES https://youtu.be/UVWq9BqJCHY
First thing I do in the morning is have a vape and last thing at night. Didn’t smoke half as many cigarettes when I was on them..
“The hobby” ….
Probably best country in the world to live at present time but there’s room for improvement
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