John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I think the Minister would agree that the current situation for lone parents when it comes to child maintenance is bizarre but he is doing nothing to address it. A condition of receiving the one-parent family payment is that the recipient is obliged to seek maintenance from the other parent. After the changes to the one-parent family payment back in July 2015, the Department wrote to the non-custodial parents advising them that they were no longer obliged to pay maintenance unless there was a court order in place. Lone parents are now forced to take out court orders to try to seek child maintenance or else they are at risk of losing their payment. Courts will not issue summonses for maintenance unless the custodial parent has a current address for the non-custodial parent, and that is not always known. The lone parent's address is provided on a court order, therefore giving the non-custodial parent the details. I am sure the Minister is aware that in some circumstances that could put the lone parent in danger, especially if that was a previously abusive relationship. Once a court order is issued the Department assesses court order maintenance as a means, regardless of whether it is paid or not. That is absolute madness. Lone parents are trapped and they must seek maintenance to receive payment or risk penalties.

See this speech in context