Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Yes, I would like to do that. My intentions and what I can do depend on the budgets allocated to me for next year. It is something that I think would be worthwhile. It was one of the recommendations made in the Joint Committee on Social Protection's report on lone parents. It is only fair that we give back the full disregard and I will try to increase the qualified child increases as much as I can. There is a cost associated with a child over 12 years as opposed to a lesser cost for those under 12. That is my ambition. I will fight for money from the Department of Finance this year but it will depend on all the money allocated and the various other considerations we must meet, including all the working family payments and dealing with the pensions anomaly. The latter will cost in excess of €80 million this year and every year hereafter. There are also the other normal budgetary constraints and fuel poverty. Lone parent payments are very much at the top of my list of priorities in light of the fact that the Joint Committee on Employment Affairs and Social Protection was unanimous in its assertion that this should be the case.

See this speech in context