Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I note Age Action Ireland research quoted Professor Alan Barrett, director of the Economic and Social Research Institute, as stating that the rules of the game were changed in the middle of the game, which is outrageously unfair to women in particular.

The second recommendation is to examine ways in which the Committee on Budgetary Oversight could contribute to eliminating the gender pay gap, such as the backdating of the homemaker's scheme. The Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Varadkar has repeated that backdating the scheme will involve a very substantial cost, although I am unaware of the timeframe on which he has based that calculation. Today's witnesses have reiterated that there would be a substantial cost were the homemaker's scheme to be backdated.