Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to make a final comment on that. The tapering of the supports for people who will be coming off social welfare and going into the workforce is the way forward. That could be something that could be tapered over two to three years to give people a change to adjust and to get to a level of income where they are better off than if they were on social welfare. I also think there is something to be done regarding people who are on low pay who have real hidden to costs, such as travel-to-work and childminding costs, which they have to factor in when they are considering whether to take up employment or not, based on what they are getting. I accept that we say that the living wage is €12.90 per hour. If you take that €12.90, multiply it by the 40 hours worked, take off PAYE, USC and other things, you are left with the take home pay. Out of that you have to take what you have to pay get to work, buy your sandwich at work or whatever you have to do. There is a clear issue there. As Dr. Healy said, the fundamental must be that work pays and we must incentivise people to work. We need more people working now because there is demand for more work. It is a great place to be in, but we need to ensure that as many people as possible can transition to work and contribute, and can have a more sustainable living. I thank the witnesses for their input.