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RollingNews.ie

Unemployment benefits are top of the wish list for the self-employed

However, the head of ISME says the government needs to show some leadership on the issue.

UNEMPLOYMENT ENTITLEMENTS ARE the most important benefits that could be introduced as part of any changes to how self-employed people pay PRSI.

That is according to Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) CEO Mark Fielding, who said that the measure would likely encourage more entrepreneurial activity.

“There is no immediate entitlement to benefits if you lose your job and it is a disincentive to starting your business,” he told Fora.

“At least if there was the ability to claim some money if you fall on harder times, (it might encourage) people who are thinking about starting a business. That is (priority) number one.”

Fielding was speaking after the Department of Social Protection announced today that it is asking 20,000 self-employed people what new benefits they would most like to receive from pay-related social insurance (PRSI) reforms planned in future budgets.

The people being surveyed include sole traders, partners, farmers, professionals and company directors.

Self-employed benefits

The Department of Social Protection survey will ask self-employed people whether they would be willing to pay more PRSI in return for access to greater benefits, or whether they would prefer to maintain the status quo.

Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar said that the survey informs self-employed people “which benefits are currently available to them and whether they consider them good value”.

It will also ask respondents to suggest a figure for how much they would be willing to pay for the benefits available to private and public sector workers.

9/12/2015. Governments Alcohol Bills Minister for Social Protection Leo Varadkar Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie / RollingNews.ie

At the moment, self-employed people are entitled to limited state support.

While their PSRI contributions cover several basic benefits, such as a state pension contribution, it does not give them access to entitlements such as jobseeker’s or short-term illness injuries benefits that many ordinary employees qualify for.

Most self-employed people currently pay a PRSI rate of 4% on their income. However, while most employees pay a similar rate, their employers add a contribution of 10.75% – which results in a combined rate of nearly 15% and greater access to benefits.

How much to pay?

However Fielding was critical of the department for asking self-employed people to nominate how much they would be willing to pay, saying many would likely not know how to price the various benefits.

“No self-employed person thinks that they will get something for nothing, but how much it (PRSI) would have to go up is beyond me,” he said.

“The government sometimes forget that they are the government. It is a bit like a general asking his privates, ‘Will we attack tomorrow or leave it until Tuesday?’ The department knows the risks and can price (PRSI contributions) accordingly.”

The Department of Social Protection survey is being sent out next week and needs to be returned by respondents by August 31st.

Written by Paul O’Donoghue and posted on Fora.ie

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    Mute Dotty Dunleary
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:30 PM

    Crush their cars and rip up the driving licences while you’re at it…

    702
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    Mute David Dickson
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:43 PM

    @Dotty Dunleary: have you still got a licence that you could rip?

    66
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    Mute jenni
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:58 PM

    @Dotty Dunleary: I wouldn’t crush that Lamborghini…but tbh I would have bothered buying a lambo in Ireland. Other than motorways, the roads are shi?e.

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    Mute Michael Powell
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:02 PM

    @jenni: what Lamborghini?

    44
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    Mute Dotty Dunleary
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:08 PM

    @jenni: Looks like a UK Reg Ferrari…

    Though probably just a Toyota MR2 with a bodykit…

    67
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    Mute Dotty Dunleary
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:09 PM

    @David Dickson: Old Skool!

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    Mute David Dickson
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:18 PM

    @Dotty Dunleary: just like the guards with their mph.

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    Mute David Edwards
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:11 PM

    @jenni: it’s a Ferrari alright and impound and crush laws like Australia wouldn’t go astray here I’d say

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    Mute Stephen Foster
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:49 PM

    @jenni: looks more like a Ferrari 288 GTO. Good ole Magnam PI.

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    Mute ウィリアム はげ
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    Jun 4th 2018, 10:22 PM

    @Stephen Foster: you’d have to be very brave or stupid to do 178km in that old piece of junk though. Most likely that was the micra in the background.

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    Mute Jack
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    Jun 4th 2018, 11:01 PM

    @ウィリアム はげ: 178 is 110 in old money. Any Ferrari is well capable of safely handling that speed. Especially on a motorway. Even lesser Ferrari’s like the 288

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    Mute David Dickson
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:37 PM

    “The car caught speeding, drink driving, and driving the wrong way around a roundabout in Donegal”
    Wait till that car gets home the owner will batter it for messing about. No petrol for a month.

    220
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    Mute Jonathan Power
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    Jun 5th 2018, 8:21 AM

    @David Dickson: he was probably practicing for the rally next weekend. That does be carnage around town bits of cars everywhere

    11
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    Mute Alan Lynch
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:27 PM

    160kph on a motorway is nothing to any modern car. Motorway speed limits need to be revised

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    Mute Finbarr Lucey
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:10 PM

    It’s nothing to a modern car but it’s the idiot behind the wheel doing that speed would cause an accident.

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    Mute kevinhunt101
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:23 PM

    @Finbarr Lucey: on a straight road it’s grand with not much traffic. A good car doesn’t feel like it’s even going that fast

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    Mute Van Transport Johnny O'Connor
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:58 PM

    @Alan Lynch: nothing until you need to stop in a hurry

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    Mute Patrick J. O'Rourke
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    Jun 4th 2018, 10:05 PM

    @Van Transport Johnny O’Connor: Or a sheep walks across the road.

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    Mute heavyhits
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    Jun 4th 2018, 10:40 PM

    @Alan Lynch: Irish drivers are very specific, so better keep the limits.

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    Mute Ohhh_reeally
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    Jun 5th 2018, 9:41 AM

    @Alan Lynch: no they don’t. The speed limits take account of a lot more factors than the cars capabilities.

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    Mute Dotty Dunleary
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    Jun 5th 2018, 10:39 AM

    @Alan Lynch: No they don’t and you’re completely wrong!

    A BMW. Audi, Merc etc,. etc. may well be able to comfortably cruise at 160kph, however the Irish motorway isn’t designed to safely handle cars traveling at that velocity.

    Irish M roads are basically dual carriageways with a higher speed limit. Autobahn’s they are not!

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    Mute Mark Boyle
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    Jun 5th 2018, 1:06 PM

    @Dotty Dunleary: What’s the difference between an Irish motorway and a German one?

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    Mute Alan Lynch
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    Jun 5th 2018, 1:50 PM

    @Dotty Dunleary: to say I’m “completely wrong” is a bit off.
    The majority of modern cars are built to easily crack 160kph. I’m not saying that should be the limit but 130-140 is perfectly responsible in my opinion.

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    Mute SlinkyDog
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:43 PM

    Are we still using mph?

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    Mute William Kelly
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    Jun 5th 2018, 6:38 AM

    @SlinkyDog: yes, we are still using mph, a lot.
    All the UK imports & N.I vehicles have mph speedos, with kph in lower case.

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    Mute John Flood
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    Jun 5th 2018, 6:43 AM

    @SlinkyDog: the UK chose to keep imperial measurements, I think we should have too. The EU extended the choice to us but we kept metric.

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    Mute Nick Caffrey
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    Jun 5th 2018, 8:09 AM

    @John Flood: No. We are Europeans, not backward facing English.

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    Mute Gareth Cooney
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:14 PM

    The Nardai must have been dizzy tailing that guy round the roundabout.
    But then again, when a Nard is dizzy, a Nard is bizzy What?

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    Mute Ohhh_reeally
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    Jun 5th 2018, 9:45 AM

    @Gareth Cooney: Nardai!! I hope that’s your Da in the profile picture and you’re just a little kid. If not then you’re an idiot

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    Mute Frank Dubogovik
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:29 PM

    my old qashqai couldn’t even get up to that speed

    41
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    Mute Jonathan Power
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    Jun 5th 2018, 8:23 AM

    @Frank Dubogovik: you’re lucky there terrible top heavy dreadful handling you’d flip it turn it over

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    Mute John Murphy
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:57 PM

    Weeeeeeeeeeeeee !!!!

    20
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    Mute Joseph Molloy
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:45 PM

    The Gardas should be out everyday. They are waste

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    Mute Michael Powell
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:03 PM

    @Joseph Molloy: they are 24hr 365days a year. You just worry about collecting your dole once a week.

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    Mute Gus Sheridan
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    Jun 4th 2018, 8:25 PM

    @Joseph Molloy: not enough of them

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    Mute David Edwards
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:46 PM

    @Michael Powell: to be fair I’ve been living in Ireland full time since 2008 and have been breath tested once, there’s no deterrent here, in Melbourne 3/4 times a month wouldn’t even unusual

    12
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    Mute Drew P. Baulsach
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    Jun 4th 2018, 10:23 PM

    @David Edwards: seems to be very dependent on where you are in the country. I’ve gone through one, ever, but my dad might go through one a week. I’m in offaly, he’s in kildare.

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    Mute Philip Mckenna
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    Jun 5th 2018, 12:59 AM

    @Drew P. Baulsach: very true I have lived in roscommon for 13 years never been tested once, was in Dublin for a wedding last year was tested twice in 3 days!

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    Mute Hans Vos
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    Jun 5th 2018, 9:28 AM

    @Drew P. Baulsach: I’m in Tipperary for 25 years and never been stopped for drink control. Only for roadtax and insurance control.

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    Mute Ohhh_reeally
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    Jun 5th 2018, 9:47 AM

    @David Edwards: I lived I’m Melbourne for 4 years and was never once breath tested

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    Mute Ohhh_reeally
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    Jun 5th 2018, 9:47 AM

    @Hans Vos: no such thing as road tax control

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    Mute Hans Vos
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    Jun 5th 2018, 11:46 AM

    @Ohhh_reeally: oh reeally? You never stopped by the Garda for tax disk control.

    4
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    Mute Ohhh_reeally
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    Jun 5th 2018, 4:30 PM

    @Hans Vos: no. Stopped at checkpoints where all required documents were checked.. not tax control as you call it

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    Mute Hans Vos
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    Jun 5th 2018, 8:39 PM

    @Ohhh_reeally: maybe not in Melbourne but in Ireland they never asked me for documents but only look if you have your disk’s displayed.

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    Mute Dermot Foley
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    Jun 4th 2018, 7:39 PM

    Absolutely disgusting tbh. But absolutely hilarious too.

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    Mute Christina Sherwin Russell
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    Jun 5th 2018, 4:06 AM

    Name and shame as they do here in ontario

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    Mute Eric Gaffney
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:43 PM

    Unlikely to be perceived as toxic.

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    Mute Stephen Mullin
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    Jun 5th 2018, 6:24 AM

    It wasn’t me Judge – It was my drunkin self drive Tesla !!

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    Mute LikeSeriouslySue
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    Jun 4th 2018, 9:38 PM

    a court appearance is hardly a deterrent – the message is not being heard. It should be treated like intent of assault with a deadly weapon.justice system in ireland is a joke and people know it,

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    Mute anthony o cathain
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    Jun 5th 2018, 11:42 AM

    3 yrs please

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    Mute Divad Nayr
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    Jun 4th 2018, 10:26 PM

    Absolutely discussing, that’s a Ferrari 288 GTO , not a Lamborghini.

    1
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