Ms Leah Speight:

Deputy Ó Snodaigh referred to the promise made by the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, and I will link that to the point made by Deputy Joan Collins about this committee. We have appeared before the committee today because we want something to emerge from it and the Deputy referred to the committee being responsible. A promise was made to our families that this would not go ahead without affordable child care but yet, it is going ahead without affordable child care. As everyone has seen, it is obviously affecting working lone parents. That is what we want to emerge from today's meeting. Deputy Boyd Barrett made a point about the two different payments, which highlights there is an element of discrimination against our families. The point I am making is this is discrimination against our families. Members should consider the deprivation rates of 63% and yet, these cuts will affect the poorest families who are working. Obviously, the issue of child care is important but child care is more than just baby-sitting because people with a child who is over 14 now have a choice between jobseeker's allowance or their part-time jobs. Why would one take people out of their part-time jobs? Why take people out of any type of employment as this simply does not make any sense? I hope, following Deputy Joan Collins's comments today about the joint committee standing by something, that this measure will not go ahead because that is what we want.