ONE of the many anomalies surrounding the payment of rent and/or arrears by local authority tenants is that they cannot have rent deducted from social welfare payments at source.
Another peculiarity is the refusal by Dublin Corporation to accept anything other than the full arrears before agreeing not to evict.
Also, until July last year only the full amount due in any given week was acceptable.
At the moment it is possible for tenants on unemployment assistance and unemployment benefit to have their rents deducted at source. Later this year single parents will also be able to do so. The Department of Social Welfare hopes then to extend this to pensioners, and then to all social welfare categories.
The reason for the staggered introduction has to do with problems in preparing "the extremely complex technology" involved. As many as 800,000 social welfare recipients are understood to be involved.
Staff at the Department of Social Welfare have been working on the system for over a year. The Minister for Social Welfare, Mr De Rossa, is understood to be anxious that it be in place as soon as possible.