Figures show €20.7bn in social welfare paid to 2.3m claimants

Nearly 2.3 million people benefitted from social welfare schemes and payments in the past year, the Department of Social Protection said today.

Some €20.7 billion was issued in total, through more than 87 million benefits payments.

Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton, illustrating the scale of work carried out by her officials, said more than 8.4 million telephone calls were handled, 95,000 job opportunities were advertised and some 154,000 PPS numbers given to individuals from some 180 countries.

She insisted her department was much more than a payments office.

“The department is no longer focused just on income supports. Social welfare must be both a safety net and a springboard,” she said. “ Since taking office, my focus has been on transforming the department from the passive benefits provider of old to one that actively engages with jobseekers to help them back to work.”

Ms Burton said new Intreo centres, introduced last year, were transforming the way jobseekers were being supported, providing them with both employment advice and income supports.

“Intreo is pro-active, ensuring jobseekers get not just the income supports they need but also employment supports to help them on the path back to work,” she said, adding that the Intreo service will be available in all offices by the end of 2014.

Intreo is a component of the department's Pathways to Work strategy designed to help those on the Live Register back into employment. It also includes an Employer Engagement and Client Services Unit which develops an integrated approach for potential employees and employers.

Ms Burton said the JobBridge internship scheme also progressed over the past 12 months. More than 13,000 internships were started and an independent evaluation of the scheme showed that just over 60 per cent of those who successfully completed their schemes went on to paid employment.