Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Research shows that being at work reduces the poverty rate for lone parents by three quarters, or 75%, compared to people who do not work. A recent study for the Department shows that lone parent families are particularly vulnerable to living in jobless households. A key way to tackle poverty then is to get parents back to work. The ongoing one-parent family payment reforms and the new back to work family dividend - which I introduced in last year's budget - will support parents to take-up and remain in employment, especially people who are the furthest from the labour market.

I have long been concerned about the high levels of poverty experienced by lone parent families, including the children in those families. In 2013, lone parent families had consistent poverty rates over two and a half times those of the general population. This is a consistent trend over time. Indeed, in 2004, when the country was pretty much in the middle of the boom, the consistent poverty rate for lone parents was more than four and a half times that of the general population.

Social transfers play a very important role in reducing income poverty for lone parent families. In 2013, social transfers excluding pensions lifted almost a quarter of the population out of income poverty. This is equivalent to a poverty reduction effect of 60% and is the best outcome in that regard in the EU.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House.

The Government is committed to tackling poverty and continue to improve access to the labour market for lone parents. I am confident that these measures will continue to improve income and living standards, and will be reflected in future poverty statistics.

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