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

The Deputy sent me the proposal some months ago. I thank him for sending it and I did read it. However, the matter does not fall within my remit. Much as I stick my nose into stuff that is none of my business, this definitely is not my business. My Department exists to support people. However, I agree with one thing. The former partner of the lady who paid €9,000 should be ashamed. Every parent has a responsibility towards his or her children. We should not need to bring someone - man or woman - to court to bear that responsibility. We have a system that does not seem to be working and nobody is really satisfied with it because it infringes on the ability of our Department to give people who are most vulnerable the support they need to have a minimum standard of living. We need to sit around a table to decide whether we are in or out, whether the Department of Justice and Equality is in or out, or whether we collaboratively do something that actually provides a straightforward mechanism. Perhaps it could be something like in the United Kingdom with attachment orders against wages or social welfare payments.

I have discovered that if there is an attachment order against a social welfare payment, we would just have to increase the social welfare of the person, meaning that again the State pays. We need to tease these things out so that the State does not end up on the hook and taking over the responsibility from errant parents.

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