Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

When you look at the literature, one thing that becomes absolutely obvious is that single parent families are the poorest in the State. Again and again that comes out in all the literature. This committee is conscious of that. General rates of social welfare are important but also anything that inhibits additional income - you start climbing out you get clawed back - has to be absolutely recognised. That goes for means disregards and so on. Ms Kiernan made the point well about what the statistics and all the reports tell us about single parent families. I wanted to make that point. It is not really a question. It is something that often gets overlooked. I remember over the years when budgetary issues come up, the finding the pot of money syndrome seems to always be there no matter how good things are. There are more demands than money. The inhibitors to people getting involved have not been tackled to the level they should be.