Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her reply. There is much to consider and I am very glad the Minister is taking the detail of the ESRI review into account. This programme is being aimed at school attendance and is targeted at those deemed to be at risk, generally coming from a particularly marginalised and impoverished community. In that context, does the Minister consider that proposals currently in the public sphere to link child benefit to school attendance are counter-intuitive when one considers that the children who are diverted into the system tend to be there to support school attendance and are usually there due to insufficient support? It is a ridiculous proposal that children like this should suffer indirectly by linking child benefit to school attendance. In the last week a Government Minister has again floated this proposal. Many of these children come from homes that experience a plethora of issues and social disadvantages. There seems to be some ambiguity on Government benches on this proposal. I would appreciate it, as many in the sector would, if the Minister could clarify the Government's position on it and whether the Government will rule out any possibility of linking the two, which I think should happen.

See this speech in context