asked the Minister for Social Welfare the reason for the delay in the payment of pay-related benefit to a person (details supplied) in County Waterford.

The person concerned is not entitled to pay-related benefit as he has no reckonable earnings during the income tax year governing his entitlement to pay-related benefit. The person concerned has been in receipt of unemployment benefit since 22 November 1980 and his entitlement to pay-related benefit falls to be governed by reckonable earnings during the income tax year April 1978 to April 1979. According to the records of my Department he was not insurably employed during this period

18.