Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail)
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I thank Ms Fahey and Ms Feely for presenting to the committee. I have three short points and will hopefully make up some time. The witnesses touched on the back-to-education and lone parents topic, which is one of the most important things. Lone parents en masseare single, lone women and not enough is being done to ensure that they get the right education to allow them to pursue careers and make something of themselves. Lack of education is one of the main reasons people remain in poverty. Supports for women with young children to get through education constitute one of the main ways to break the poverty cycle. I commend the witnesses on that and will definitely provide what support I can to keep it on the radar.

On the supplementary welfare officer role, both the witnesses' organisations have stepped in on numerous occasions to provide once-off payments. Do both organisations have a chart setting out on what, exactly, they give people money to spend? Is it buggies, rent or electricity bills, for example?

Do the organisations have some sort of pie-chart whereby I could find out on what exactly people are spending the money they give them, whether it be buggies, rent or electricity bills? I am interested to know how far they are stepping in and what exactly their money is being spent on when the State should be fulfilling that role, rather than both those great organisations.

The third topic, which the Chairperson, Deputy Curran, has mentioned before, concerns the group discount of fuel and other utilities. I would like to hear the witnesses' take on it. It is something that really needs to be explored.