Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I am under pressure today as Deputy Conor Lenihan is abroad and I have to work even harder than usual. I am happy to do this.

It was good to hear people being positive about last week's budget. There will always be a need to make political points and I have no difficulty with this. People have generally been very fair to what was a good budget. The media made that point, and I even heard RTE stating it was a good budget, so it must be true. I was pleased the Government considered the needs of the elderly and those in the child care area. The various social welfare announcements were particularly welcome and helpful.

In any debate such as this, we should be prepared to make points about tweaking the system. All of us will be visited by constituents making some point every day of every month. It is in this way we often hear for the first time about an issue regarding how the system is working. I made the point on many occasions that since I became a Deputy three and a half years ago, I get far more social welfare queries than I did before, despite my having been in the local authority for a long period. That people come to their Dáil representatives to raise these issues reflects the confidence people have in the system. It is a good process as we may not only try to deal with the needs and difficulties of constituents on an ongoing basis with the Department, but we can raise these needs in policy discussions also.

On many different occasions in social welfare debates we made the point about the excellent way in which the Department of Social and Family Affairs deals with queries. I have no complaint about the Department as it does a superb job. It is important to understand that it is vital that good quick responses are made. Very often, people coming to us at our clinics and offices are those who are vulnerable and under pressure. With the current numbers availing of the services of the Department of Social and Family Affairs, it is important to acknowledge the good job being done.

I hope the Minister will continue to examine avenues to satisfy this particular appetite. Where the system is not working for people, I hope he ensures that the Department will listen, respond and deal with the issues. In Tallaght we have a superb facility at the social welfare office in the Square. It is probably one of the most modern of its kind here and it provides an excellent service. If the Minister can find some time early in the New Year I will be happy to show him around Tallaght.

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