asked the Minister for Social Welfare the number of cases in which no arrears of disability benefit were available, or held over, to recoup supplementary welfare allowances granted to persons awaiting payment of disability benefit; and the amount of money involved in the months of November and December 1980 and January 1981.

Statistics of the cases in which arrears of disability benefit are not available or held over to recoup supplementary welfare allowance granted to claimants while waiting payment of benefit are not maintained in my Department.

Has the Minister any idea of the number of people or amount of money involved?

Those statistics are not maintained by the Department.

Is the Minister aware that the payment of supplementary welfare allowances to those who are not receiving their benefits, whether it is unemployment, sicknesss or disability benefit, goes on for a considerable time? As a result the finances of local authorities are hit. Is the Minister aware of that problem?

It would not have a long-term detrimental effect on local authorities because it means an adjustment from the Department of Social Welfare to the local authorities and that is only a short-term matter.

Is the Minister satisfied that there is no need to keep such statistics? Is he aware that the community welfare officers have their work seriously impaired due to the amount of time they must devote to keeping accounts of the supplementary welfare payments they make and of the disability, unemployment or sickness benefits that are subsequently paid? That additional work is seriously affecting the work of community welfare officers in my community.

The normal work of the community welfare officer is to ensure that those payments are adequate. Where there are extra charges or needs they are met. Recently when there was a changeover in the service to the PRSI for disability and a change to computerisation there was an increase in the numbers but that figure has been reduced because much of the work has been done. It will be some time before it is back to normal.

Is the Minister aware that officials of his Department did not accept an invitation to attend a meeting of the supplementary welfare officers although they could have pointed out to the officials the difficulties they were experiencing? Is the Minister aware that he is encouraging malpractice because some people are withholding certain details so that they can draw supplementary social welfare allowances and disability and unemployment allowances? Of course, the Minister does not have any statistics about this matter.

The cost of keeping statistics is quite considerable. Every additional cost, including even the cost of answering here in the House a lot of questions which normally come by way of letter, is also very considerable. There is a limit to the amount of resources that should be expended in that way. Nevertheless, estimates of these figures can be provided——

Is that not why the Government appointed extra Ministers?

——from time to time in the normal management arrangements within the health boards and these will give an indication of the position.

A final supplementary from Deputy Crotty.

Could I suggest to the Minister——

A question, please, Deputy.

Might I ask the Minister if it is possible for the ordinary person to get an answer to a letter from his Department or the Department of Social Welfare? I can give the Minister details of a case in which a person wrote 11 times since October and got no answer. That is one case only. There are quite a number of others. Is the Minister aware that people cannot get replies to letters——

Or telephone calls.

I am quite surprised at Deputy Crotty complaining about telephone calls since I know that within my Department there is a special arrangement which applies to Deputy Crotty under which his secretary receives direct communications from the Department in relation to problems. If the Deputy has a specific problem to which he is unable to find a solution and if he will give me details, I will have it solved for him.

Question No. 26.

I have been endeavouring to get in touch with the Minister for the last three months and I have failed, so——

The Minister must be inundated with complaints from people who cannot get replies.

I cannot even get in touch with him. The Minister will not talk to me, so there is no point in his saying that.