Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)

I am sharing time with Deputies John Paul Phelan and Tom Barry.

I welcome the Bill and congratulate the Minister on taking the lead on this issue and making changes to the social welfare system, which is in need of mindful and urgent reform. This reform is just the first steps on the road to recovery for social welfare. Many more changes are needed to make the system work better and to support those people who need financial supports to survive on a day to day basis.

I will not say what I thought of the input from the previous Deputy across the floor of the Chamber, but the previous Government has left us with a legacy of reckless overspending.

Its electioneering tactics saw social welfare payments and benefits increased significantly to gain public support, with no thought for the future and how these massive bills would be paid for by the State. One such payment was the €1,000 early childhood payment, which was withdrawn after three years as it was simply not sustainable in the long term. Now, unfortunately, many other payments are becoming more and more unsustainable.

Our annual social welfare budget is currently approximately €21 billion, and savings have to be found, as this figure will only grow, especially given our ageing population and the increasing number of people who will draw the State pension. Compared with the population in other countries, the Irish social welfare system is generous. Our old age pension, jobseeker's payments and child benefit payments are considerable in comparison to those of other first world countries such as those of our nearest neighbour, the United Kingdom. Many people in low income jobs compare their financial situations to those of their neighbours who are not working and in receipt of social welfare. The people in low income jobs feel aggrieved that they are taking home the same - in some cases even less - amount of money as their neighbours who are not working. This is why it is important to promote work and above all non-dependency on social welfare. The majority of people in this country want to work. They have a genuine work ethic and do not want to be dependent on benefits. We need to work to break the cycle of dependency and offer people a way forward towards becoming financially independent if they are capable.

I welcome the reform of the one parent family payment and the restructuring of age limits. This is a difficult but necessary decision, and it will bring us into line with other countries. The one-parent family payment cost the state €1.11 billion last year and we cannot afford this bill in future. We have been fortunate in this country; up to now, lone parents received a payment for their child up to the age of 18, or 22 if they were in full-time education. We seem to be the exception as the situation in other countries is very different. In Britain and Northern Ireland, lone parents are obliged to seek work when their youngest child turns seven. Our friends in Sinn Féin in Northern Ireland support this. It is important that these measures are phased in over time and that existing recipients will not be affected until 2013.

I also agree with the Minister that other supports must be in place to allow this to happen, such as allowing more people to go on CE schemes, to have proper training places and, above all, proper child care facilities. Many single parents were very young when they became parents, and some had to give up further education and training opportunities to mind their child. It is important that these parents are now supported to return to education or re-enter the workforce. It is also important that they are encouraged to reach their potential and enjoy new opportunities which may have seemed beyond their reach in the past.

This will also have a positive influence on their children in the long run. That is why the Minister for Social Protection has introduced new schemes such as Pathways to Work, JobBridge and plans to expand CE schemes. We do not want to see people living in poverty and we are committed to supporting those who most need help from the State. Parents whose entitlements to one-parent family payment cease can apply for jobseeker's allowance. They many also be entitled to family income supplement or back to education allowance.

I also welcome the special provisions for people in receipt of domiciliary care allowance, that the one-parent family payment will remain until the youngest child reaches 16 years, after which the child will receive a payment in his or her own right. For those recently bereaved, the one-parent family payment will be paid for two years or until the youngest child is 18.

There has been much attention in the media recently surrounding the exceptional needs payments paid out by community welfare officers. It should be noted that the majority of these payments are made in the greater Dublin area. In my own constituency of Dublin South Central, across three community welfare areas, €1.9 million was given out in exceptional needs payments in the first six months of 2011 by the Department of Social Protection. This figure included €22,617 on buggies and prams, €211,193 on communion and confirmation and €211,193 on adult clothing. I reared five children and I used the same pram and the same cot for all five of them. I do not understand how in Dublin South Central, the constituency with the largest number of single parent families, every time a new baby is born, a new pram is bought. I accept that people often need a helping hand when unexpected expenses arise but the exceptional needs payments are now seen by many as simply another allowance. This is where change and reform is needed.

I also support the idea of a single social welfare payment, which the Minister has already spoken about, that would target the individual needs of the unemployed and those in financial distress. I am fully aware of the difficulties facing many people in my own constituency because of the downturn in the economy. Many have huge personal debt because they have lost their jobs or are in negative equity. For these people, this is their first encounter with the social welfare system and they want to get out of it as soon as they can. We must support these people and help them get back on their feet. The bottom line is that social welfare is not designed as a long-term solution, except in a small number of cases, where people are not capable of work or training, and have no other source of income. We need to continue to reform the system and not commit another generation of young people to a life of dependency.

I recently made representations to the city council for a number of people I have on a housing list. I noted to my horror that 37 flats are available in a flat complex in the inner city. The housing officer told me the flats are ready to go but no one will move into them. I am continuously meeting people at my clinics who are looking for houses but who will not move into flats. I am regularly meeting young parents with up to four children who do not want to be housed in a flat, who only want to be housed in a house. Many young people where I live, however, bought properties that are now worth less than half what they paid. They are disillusioned with the social welfare situation where they are in negative equity while someone they went to school with has a house with a very small rent. This must be addressed.

I have worked all my life in my parish and my community and I constantly fear the young people I meet on a daily basis will see being a single parent as the only opportunity they have when they finish school. These first steps to reform the welfare system should be welcomed by everyone. We must ensure the poor and those most in need of help are looked after.

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