Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We will not be opposing this Bill. I put my thoughts together last week in advance of speaking on the Social Welfare Bill. That was before what happened here on Thursday with the sit-in or lock-in and what transpired over the weekend in terms of the protests as well. Some of what I wanted to discuss was already in my mind.

I have no wish to sound alarmist, but I believe that at this stage our society is at little fractured at the edges. This is something we cannot dismiss in this House. Social protection and social solidarity are words, but they mean things in respect of how we view society and how we want to structure society. Let us consider where we are after the difficulties of the past seven years and the hardship that people have been through. As parliamentarians we have much to learn, whether on the Government or Opposition side. We need to realise that a certain amount of healing is required in the broader community. Some communities have been badly affected by the downturn in the economy and the consequential policies pursued to address the underlying budgetary and fiscal problems, as well as the problems related to the banking collapse.

For all that, I believe this is no time to applaud ourselves for bringing forward social protection measures on an annual basis. They are inheritably important and should be done as a matter of course and form. We can argue around the fringes about the areas we should prioritise when we have to make difficult decisions, but the principles of social protection, supporting social solidarity and supporting those who most need the support of the State are principles that any decent society would apply as a matter of course.

When I say society is fractured, I mean it is fractured for many reasons. The downturn in the economy had an impact on people's hopes and aspirations during the good times as well as on their visions of themselves and where they were going to take their children in the years ahead. When all of that was taken from them, some found themselves requiring the State to step in and support them in some way or another.

Another group of people have been effectively condemned to social protection for all their lives. This is an intergenerational thing and something that must be addressed quickly, because in some parts of our city - not only this city but other cities as well - it is endemic in certain communities, where it is seen to be the norm to be on social welfare and leave school early. In these communities it would be unusual for a person to get to third level education. That is a failure on our part collectively in this Chamber and on the part of Governments which have sat across the floor for many years. It is time to recognise that it is not only about giving people an extra few bob in social welfare simply to keep them quiet. Something fundamental has to be done to ensure that we can inspire people, that we can give them hope and confidence and that we can lead them to believe they can better themselves. Social mobility - the yearning to better one's self, or for one's children to better themselves - is inherently important in human behaviour. However, this yearning to advance one's self is almost cut adrift in some communities now. There is almost no hope in some communities, and this something we must address quickly.

I know the Minister for Social Protection and I have no wish to make overtly political points. We do that across the Chamber from time to time - that is part of our role in opposition. With the best will in the world, the measures of €5 per month in child benefit payments, the back-to-work family dividend and so on are all welcome and much needed, but something more fundamental is required. We need a shift in policy to shift the thinking of many people such that they can have hope and see education as a pathway to something else.

7 o’clock

Deputy Denis Naughten referred earlier to a young girl named Jenny who was absent from schools for weeks on end according to the report of the National Education and Welfare Board.

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