Ms Karen Kiernan:

The review group is looking at what the Department of Social Protection can actually do. Hopefully, it will have very good recommendations relating to the assessment of means. It will also look at whether an agency is needed at all. We are aware that maintenance is assessed as means for HAP, the medical card, the childcare scheme and sometimes assessed multiple times meaning that people can actually end up with less money. That needs to be resolved. It should become a non-means tested payment. It should be included. We are waiting on the family justice strategy and the family law courts Bill to be published. We need to see this as supporting that work. I am aware of judges going into courts with calculators. Somebody could work on an assessment framework for what is appropriate to meet the child's need. As Ms Whyte said, family supports help people make decisions outside the court system, which is cheaper and quicker. Those things can be resourced. We have specialist services in this area. These things can easily be done very quickly.