Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)

The Government has instructed a senior officials group on social inclusion, which has been established, to draw up an implementation plan. It will consider issues such as child care, education, training and activation measures and will discuss co-operation with various agencies. One of the key points made by the lone parents' groups was that while they were broadly supportive of these changes they wanted the other parallel issues such as child care and education and training to be brought along in tandem. I took their point and that is the reason the senior officials group is beginning this work immediately.

The tests will commence later in the year and I imagine a couple of months should be sufficient time to run those tests. I envisage legislation on this matter will come before the House next year. This will depend on the will of the holder of this office and the Government of the day. I believe these proposals are sufficiently well founded and have a wide degree of public support so that whoever has the honour to hold this post will drive forward with these proposals. Additional facilitators will be provided if they are required and they can be redeployed from other parts of the system rather than recruited directly. We will ensure that the facilitation process is fully supported. The ending of the cohabitation rule is at the heart of the proposals. The legislation is in draft form and all the major proposals in the discussion document have been translated into draft sections of a Bill that is awaiting the Government's decision to introduce it and that will only happen following these tests and following the completion of the work of the senior officials.

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