Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. The Tánaiste's response as outlined became more positive as it went on.

Perhaps allowing a jobseeker's transitional payment recipient to be eligible for JobsPlus is very welcome. Given the Government's thrust towards activation and trying to upskill, educate and motivate people to re-engage in working and seeking work, nobody taking the opportunities afforded to them through education and training should be held back because of a lone parent's payment. The reforms made to the lone parent's allowance means when children reach a certain age, the parent must go on jobseeker's allowance. We will have a limbo for parents who want to get back to work and who may have completed a course or JobsBridge programme as we will ask them to wait until they ratchet up their eligibility while in receipt of jobseeker's payment. This is not the type of proactive social welfare system we want to see. We want to see people who are eager to get back to work being given every opportunity. In financial and real terms for employers, and I agree employers have very warmly responded and welcomed the changes we made to the very cumbersome PRSI scheme which existed, if it comes to employing somebody coming with lone parent's allowance versus somebody with the added incentive of JobsBridge, I can see why they might pick the latter. We need to address this and not allow these parents to linger in limbo.

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