Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We want parents who will be protected and sustained. We need to ensure they are not be impoverished in any way.

Many people have outlined what these proposals would mean. Clearly, two thirds of the people who would be affected, estimated at 29,400, will be at least as well off and many cases better off. There are the incentives to get back to work, the €1,550 back-to-work family dividend for the first year per child and half that again for the second year. Of course, there is also the family income supplement.

I have no doubt there will be difficulties. I believe there will be difficulties with the 19-hour cut-off point for the family income supplement. However, we need to monitor constantly the difficulties that arise. There will be difficulties with child care. The difficulties that arise must be monitored, fed into the system and addressed in the upcoming budget.

See this speech in context