Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I would like to make a brief point about North-South relations in the context of what has been said about PIP assessments. I have seen the Ken Loach film mentioned. I admire Ken Loach and have seen his films during the years. The situation depicted in the film in question would never arise in Ireland. Deputies will recall that the main character had worked all of his life. He became a widower when his wife died following a terminal illness. As every Deputy in the House knows, under our system, he would entirely qualify on a paid basis for a full widower's pension, which, of course, is much more substantial in the Republic than in the North or the rest of the United Kingdom. I am concerned that people might become frightened as they listen to the examples being given. There should be no suggestion the people who work in our social protection system handle their clients in the same way as has happened in the United Kingdom. It should be mentioned that much of this activity in the United Kingdom is outsourced, whereas very little of it is outsourced here. In fairness, Ken Loach's system is striking in what it teaches us about the United Kingdom. I assure Deputy Boyd Barrett, in case he is advising people, that the system in Ireland is totally different.

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