The Parliamentary Committee on Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance was informed today, Tuesday, 15 March 2022, in the context of the meeting with the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, on the progress of the implementation of the Council of Ministers' decision to transfer the competence to examine benefits from the Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance to the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare, as well as the timetable for creating the appropriate infrastructure at the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare to enable the transfer of the Department for the Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities to the Ministry of Social Welfare. In particular, they exchanged views, inter alia, on the modernisation of legislation falling within the competence of the Ministry of Social Welfare, the reorganisation of the Social Welfare Services, the updating of the provisions of the Plan of Assistance to Pensioners with Low Income, as well as the development of shelter/care facilities for minors and persons with disabilities and the relevant involvement of local authorities or non-governmental organisations in the management of these facilities.
The Commission decided to hold a further meeting with the Deputy Minister of Social Welfare in May in order to ascertain the progress made in relation to the issues raised before it at the present meeting.
The Committee also continued its discussion on "The problems and delays encountered in the processing of applications for Minimum Guaranteed Income and Low Pensioner's Allowance by the Welfare Benefits Administration, and the need to amend the relevant legislation in order to make it a real safety net for vulnerable groups of the population' (own-initiative inquiry following a recommendation of the Parliamentary Committee on Labour, Welfare and Social Security, No. Doc. 23.04.038.1120-2021). In particular, it examined the progress in implementing a single computerised system for the management of the relevant applications, as well as the measures taken to address the delay in the payment of benefits under the Law on Minimum Guaranteed Income and Social Benefits in General. The Committee also discussed, inter alia, the modernisation of the relevant legislative framework, the simplification of application procedures, the possibility of reassessment by the executive of the amount of some of the benefits in question, as well as the creation of service points for those concerned by the Welfare Benefits Management Service at provincial level, through the Citizen Centres and the provincial offices of the Social Welfare Services.
