Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

Nobody in this House or in this country would leave a seven year old without care of an adult. Let us get that clear first. This legislation is not about the age at which children should be left on their own. Nobody would leave a child on his or her own at seven years of age and nobody is contemplating that. The legislation is addressing the age at which the lone parent's allowance is payable. What is proposed is a reform in the social welfare system which will, over a number of years, reduce the age at which the lone parent payment is made. That goes hand in hand with changes in the delivery and provision of child care so that it will be possible to implement those changes over time.

This is about reforming. We have to understand that when we are reforming a system like social welfare or a system like the payment of lone parent's allowance, these things take time. They cannot be done overnight. They require transitional arrangements to be put in place, as well as work and preparation. In this particular case, the reduction in the age for the payment of the lone parent's allowance goes hand in hand with the delivery of child care. That is what the Minister for Social Protection has made clear and that is the position of the Government.

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