Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

The Minister's answers and meetings with his officials suggest he would prefer if his department could just write cheques and forget about its other responsibilities. The Minister's approach shows a lack of cohesion, as did his answer on fuel poverty. Previously he suggested the habitual residence clause was a matter for the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. There is no holistic view on this.

Going back to proposals on one-parent families and so on, has the Minister had discussions with FÁS regarding a greater degree of flexibility in training programmes. This may be a matter for a different Department but if the Minister wants to introduce his proposals on lone parents there is a need for greater flexibility. The hours FÁS training centres operate will not suit many parents and I wonder whether he has covered this in his discussions.

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