Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the recent research by the Vincentian Partnership for Social Justice, which clearly demonstrates the considerable progress made by the Government since the publication of its original research entitled, Minimum Essential Budgets for Six Households, in late 2006. This is one of a number of research models and presents some useful information. The updated findings will be studied with interest by the Department. The recent update shows significant improvements in the position for most household types. In particular, pensioner couple households and lone parents or couples with younger children have seen their positions improve dramatically.

The decisive steps taken by the Government in the past two years on a wide range of fronts have addressed some of the problems and challenges identified in the 2006 report and in similar studies. Such actions include the introduction of the early child care supplement and increases in social welfare rates and the national minimum wage. Social welfare pensions have increased by €30 per week and basic welfare rates by €32 per week since 2006. These increases have been well in excess of both inflation and wage growth. Child benefit rates have increased by more than 10% in the same period while the qualified child allowance has been significantly restructured and enhanced. Other measures have included improvements in the means testing arrangements for a range of schemes, such as jobseekers allowance and disability allowance, which are designed to encourage recipients and their spouses or partners to work, thereby increasing total household income, changes in the upper earnings limit for one-parent family payment and improvements in the family income supplement focused on larger families.

The Government remains committed to improving the standard of living of welfare dependent and low-income households significantly and to implementing the national action plan on social inclusion, a key objective of which is the elimination of consistent poverty. We will continue to pursue these policies having regard to available resources.

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