Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will begin by welcoming the Bill. It is absolutely essential given that it implements everything announced on budget day. As always, I welcome every increase to every payment and every move that is positive in the Bill. In my contribution I want to raise a number of issues. Some of these I have been raising for some time and there are others on which I hope the Minister might be able to give us some clarity.

An issue I have raised many times is the additional needs payment. I have been unable to get a reply from the Department on the current processing times for additional needs payments. At this point I have followed up directly with the office three times and I cannot get the processing times. What I really want to know is how long it is taking today for the payments to be processed. They are supposed to be emergency payments. The most recent details I have are from September when 95% of applications were being processed within five to eight weeks. This is far too long. In this context, it would be appropriate if the Minister could give us an update on the additional 80 staff she recently said would be taken on. I would also like an update on the progress being made with putting this payment online to make it easier for some people who would find it easier to apply online. This option is important. It is something I raised prior to the summer recess. I understand work is under way. We really need to see movement on this.

Community welfare officers, CWOs, are no longer in our communities. People cannot walk in the door the way they used to be able to. In my home town of Ballaghaderreen, the CWO worked out of the health centre. The family resource centre has raised this issue with me, particularly now when we have a lot of new communities. It used the example of somebody in a domestic violence situation who does not have ten or 15 minutes to be on the phone chatting to someone to explain the situation. When they went to the shop, they could pop into the health centre and see the CWO. This option is no longer available. This is very concerning. I ask the Minister to look at it.

The social welfare rates are still not being set against anything that is evidence-based, primarily the minimum essential standard of living that the Vincentian Partnership for Social Justice brings forward every year. Repeatedly every year the organisations on the coalface raise adequacy and the minimum essential standard of living with regard to social welfare rates. Will the Minister look at this? I know this cannot be done overnight. I know it will cost an awful lot of money but as access to health and childcare improve, the minimum essential standard of living will reduce. This will mean payments do not keep having to increase.

I would like to see evidence-based social welfare rates when increases are announced. That way those who need it most will be targeted, and it will reduce poverty. If we do not have a social protection system that, at its core, protects people from poverty, it is a system that is not good enough.

Far too many social welfare rates are set well below the poverty line. Unfortunately, Central Statistics Office, CSO, data are always behind so the latest data are for 2021. The rates of people out of work due to illness - under which category those with a disability are typically included - who are in consistent poverty and at risk of poverty and deprivation have increased across the board. Deprivation levels among lone-parent families are at 44.9%. Almost half of lone-parent families in the State are living in deprivation. What that means for households and children should be raising alarm bells for all of us. Lone-parent organisations, with which I engage a lot, were disappointed with the budget in that there was nothing specific for them, aside from the lump-sum payments, which they and I welcomed. Going forward, we must look at the one-parent family payment and consider moves we can make to reduce the poverty rate, which is consistent and far too high, deprivation and the risk of poverty for lone-parent families.

Energy poverty is growing and is hugely concerning for everyone. We need an energy poverty strategy. The previous strategy was allowed to lapse in 2019 we have seen nothing since. Action needs to be taken in that regard. Changes were made to the fuel allowance for older people, which is important. It will make a significant difference for many older households and is most welcome. The Minister could have linked the working family payment to the fuel allowance, given that they are provided to low-income households. This should be looked at again.

I ask the Minister to provide an update on the cost-of-disability research and the strawman proposal. Many issues have been identified in respect of long-term disability payments, including the blind pension, invalidity pension and disability allowance. I understand a review of those payments is under way as part of this process, and that is welcome. We need to see action on that as quickly as possible.

I refer to the means of family carers and access to carer's allowance. There needs to be a comprehensive and detailed review of the carer's allowance. Three family carers came before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Social Protection, Community and Rural Development and the Islands recently, none of whom, bar one, were receiving carer's allowance because the husband or wife was working and their means were over the threshold, yet they were providing 24-7 care for children. We must look at this. When care is being provided on such a basis, they should be able to access some kind of support. That care should be recognised across the board.

I welcome the Report of the Child Maintenance Review Group that was published last week. It recommended several important policy changes that will require legislation. Lone-parent organisations and I have raised these issues many times. I wish to focus on the first two recommendations on the removal of child maintenance as household means in social welfare supports, which could be included in the Bill. Lone parents have waited long enough. Child maintenance should never be treated as household income. It should always be treated as income for the rearing of a child or children. The review group was strong in its recommendations on that. In addition, lone parents are obliged to prove, typically through the courts, that they have sought maintenance in order to receive the few lone-parent supports available. The review group was strong in recommending that this needs to be removed. We have raised this many times in this House. I know the Minister is looking to introduce legislation on these issues next year, which is very important. Is this happening and can we have a timeline on that? I also ask that there be consultation with lone-parent organisations ahead of that legislation. When we are making these changes, at long last, it is so important that we get them right. That consultation is most important.

I was disappointed the review group did not make a full recommendation on the establishment of a child maintenance service or agency. However, given all the work the group did - they did a lot for which I give huge credit - the majority of the group determined that a child maintenance service should be established and that child maintenance needs to be taken out of the remit of the courts. The Minister should consider this in light of the report.

To conclude, I want to mention a couple of other issues I have raised throughout the year. I refer to Tracy McGinnis, who lost her son, Brendan Bjorn, earlier this year. I tabled an amendment, at that time, on disability allowance for young adults. Rather than the allowance ceasing immediately when a young adult passes away, it should continue for some time afterwards, as is the case with domiciliary care allowance, DCA. In July, the Minister said that officials were looking at this. I would appreciate an update in this regard. Disability allowance should be aligned with DCA in the context of the death of a child or a young adult. That is already a difficult enough time as it is without the financial cliff-edge.

I have mentioned parental bereavement leave and benefit several times, which may be under the remit of the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman. However, the payment is paid by the Department of Social Protection so I ask that it be looked at. The timelines that are in place when a parent loses a child are not good enough. A couple of days off are provided. We need to see a payment introduced at a similar rate to parents' leave and benefit, and that two weeks would be given in the case of the death of a child, including stillbirth and miscarriage, as is in place in the North of Ireland. In the context of the Social Welfare Bill, we typically look at existing measures but we also need to look at what does not exist. This would be an important support and I hope the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, is working hand in hand with the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, on that.

I have asked about the few supports available to those who are working and paying PRSI. They may get a scale and polish, or an eye test. A lot of the time, people are paying PRSI and do not know what they are entitled to. I have suggested developing an app, which is in place in several countries. The app would allow people to see what they are paying towards PRSI and notify them when they are entitled to an eye test, or whatever, based on their PRSI contribution. That kind of information for workers who are contributing, as well as for the State pension, would be important. I ask the Minister to consider that and look at our proposal.

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