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

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this legislation. In the time available to me, I will refer briefly to some of its important provisions. There is an acknowledgement in the Bill that work needs to pay and there must be a reward for those in employment. There are different models of social welfare in operation in different countries, with comparisons often drawn between those in operation in the United States and in the Scandinavian countries, respectively. We must ensure that our own unique system rewards those who go out to work, as well as ensuring safeguards are in place for taxpayers' money.

The Bill acknowledges that overpayments can happen within our social welfare system, some of which arise from administrative errors within the Department and some as a result of errors by individuals. In that context, I welcome the provisions dealing with recovery of overpayments.

The Bill provides for the transposition of aspects of EU Directive 2010/41 regarding the equal treatment of men and women who are self-employed. The deadline for transposition of this directive is August, so its inclusion in the Bill is welcome.

I also welcome the amendment to the rules regarding habitual residency. I have come across cases where individuals who were born in this country and spent most of their working life in Britain, for example, have returned home to find they must be resident in the State for two years before becoming eligible for social welfare. Under the new provision, the requirement will be for a person to be habitually resident in the State on the date of making an application for social welfare and to remain habitually resident in order for the entitlement to subsist. I welcome that change.

Another welcome amendment relates to family income supplement, FIS, which is vital in assisting people to remain in work. The Bill provides that where a person qualifies for the payment, that entitlement will continue for 52 weeks regardless of any change in his or her circumstances.

The Bill also allows for the use of PPS numbers by Irish Water for determining free water allowances for household members aged under 18. There is potential for liaison with the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government regarding the mapping of PPS numbers to the electoral register. PPS numbers are a unique identifier for every citizen and have obvious potential in terms of tidying up the register and making our democratic process more secure.

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