Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important Bill. I believe in and understand the necessity for a social welfare system and have often highlighted the fact that the vast majority of citizens will rely on this system of support at some point in their lives. It is much more than a safety net that helps citizens through hard times.

The social protection system does not exist in isolation; the State must be able to raise the necessary resources to fund it. Much of the debate and commentary on social welfare matters is devoid of facts and figures. Social protection accounts for 37% of all State expenditure. In other words, almost two of every five euro this Government spends is on social welfare support schemes or programmes. In 2013 social welfare will account for €20.3 billion - by far the largest proportion of State spending. Given the sheer size of the social welfare budget, it is unthinkable that it would be not be examined for efficiency and effectiveness at a time when the gap between our State's income and spending is so large. We are, in effect, borrowing €42 million every day just to meet current day-to-day expenditure. In spite of this, budget 2013 strives to protect the most vulnerable in our society and does so by maintaining all weekly social welfare payments. There have been no changes or reductions in core social welfare payment rates. This is vital, not only because the budget comes at a time when the State's financial position is very constrained, but also because it recognises that social welfare is a lifeline that helps citizens who have fallen on hard times. It also recognises that social welfare spending is a hugely significant economic stimulus, which crucially supports local businesses and jobs.

It is important that the State pension has been maintained at its present level because this provides certainty to our senior citizens. In addition, the retention of the free travel pass ensures that they can continue to be active in their communities.

While recognising the financial constraints on Government spending, the changes to the household benefits package also recognise that the State is no longer the provider of electricity and utility services and has a duty to taxpayers to obtain the best value possible for public money. Further work will be required in this regard in order to assist citizens to shop around for the best energy deals in the marketplace. It is apt to note that there has been no change to either the rate or duration of the weekly fuel allowance.

Social welfare must be more than just financial assistance. There must also be non-monetary supports which are more important in the long term. These include labour activation measures, whereby the Department of Social Protection, in partnership with the Department of Education and Skills, assists citizens in reducing and then ending their dependence on social welfare.

I welcome the new initiatives introduced by the Minister, including the €14 million which will be provided for the Department of Children and Youth Affairs for the provision of 6,000 after-school places and the additional €2 million for school meals programmes which will cater for those children in disadvantaged areas and ensure they receive regular school meals of good quality. I also welcome the 2,500 additional places allocated under the Tús scheme, the 2,500 new places being allocated under JobBridge and the 2,000 additional places being made available under community employment schemes. I particularly welcome the initiative to provide 3,000 places under a new social employment scheme that will operate within the local authority system. Local authorities have been obliged to deal with job losses owing to embargoes, the non-replacement of staff, etc., and this initiative offers them a great opportunity to provide people with valuable work experience.

I am concerned by all cuts contained in the Bill. When money is taken from people's pockets, difficulties can arise. Cuts to child benefit, respite grants and farm assist payments are difficult. While the cuts to child benefit will hit all areas equally, the cuts to farm assist payments are particularly and obviously anti-rural. I appreciate that the headline rate is being maintained and that farm families with the lowest incomes will be least affected by these changes. I also welcome that the farm assist payment will remain flexible, that changes in income will be taken into account and that farmers can ask community welfare officers to review their claims where their circumstances change. There is no change to the disregards in respect of income under the REPS and the AEOS, which is welcome. Child benefit payments have been the subject of debate for many years. There is no doubt that a simple across the board cut is the easiest to administer. There are significant costs associated with means testing, but the introduction of such testing should be considered in the future.

Overall, I acknowledge the difficult decisions the Minister was obliged to make. I hope a return to economic growth will reduce the requirement for such a large social welfare budget. If we get people back into employment, we will ensure their reliance on social welfare payments will be reduced.

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