Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

The total payments for the past three years were approximately €56 million. In the overall child benefit budget, that may not seem like a lot of money but to people relying on social welfare income, €56 million is a lot of money. If we are to retain confidence in the social welfare contract between the citizen and the State, we must ensure we can tell people that the payments are appropriate and that, particularly in this case, payments benefit the children. At the back of some people's minds, there is the question about whether these payments are verified and whether they go to the benefit of the children in other countries. The Department carries out regular checks and requires certification that the children involved exist and are resident where they are advised as being resident. It is important to eliminate social welfare fraud so that Irish citizens have confidence that the taxes they pay when working are used in an appropriate way, particularly to benefit children resident in this country.

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