Willie Penrose (Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 63: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his plans for the reform of the social welfare provisions available to lone parents; if he has considered the recent statistics published by the CSO on the number of births occurring outside marriage; his views on the recent EU survey which found that lone parents are extremely vulnerable to poverty; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6108/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Increases in the numbers of non-marital birth, as revealed in statistics, do not necessarily result in comparable increases in the incidence of lone parenthood. In many cases the parents of the children are living together and will parent together. A significant proportion marry soon after the birth of their first child. Others continue to cohabit for a period afterwards. For example, CSO figures reveal that up to 40% of cohabiting couples have children and that a significant proportion are in their twenties, many of whom may subsequently marry.

According to the census returns, there were 154,000 lone parent families in 2002, comprising one in six of all families, with 85% headed by females. In terms of marital status, 40% were headed by a widowed person, 32% by a separated or divorced person and 24% were headed by a single person.

The numbers in receipt of the one parent family payment in 2004, were 80,103, up from 58,960 in 1997, when the scheme in its current form was introduced. There were, in addition, 12,225 lone parents with children in receipt of payments under social insurance — 10,769 widowed persons and 1,456 deserted wives. In total, therefore, 92,328, or up to 60% approximately of, lone parents are receiving weekly payments under the social welfare system.

The social welfare system has provided income support and other services for lone parents and has adapted to the changes in recent decades that has seen, proportionately, a decline in the incidence of lone parenthood arising from widowhood, and a growth in the incidence arising from separation and divorce and from parents being unmarried.

The findings of the recent EU Standard of Living Conditions survey bear out the findings of previous surveys, and of experience in other developed countries also, that poverty rates tend to be higher among working age households with children than those without. This is mainly due both to the direct costs of rearing children, including child care costs, and the opportunity costs related to the reduced earning capacity of parents, arising from their care responsibilities. This applies particularly to larger families, and to one parent families which can face a higher poverty risk, as the lone parent has to be the main breadwinner and carer at the same time.

For people in working age households, the main route out of poverty is employment. Despite the huge increases in employment participation in Ireland in recent years and in employment opportunities generally, the proportion of lone parents in employment is low compared to other developed countries.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House.

The earnings disregard introduced in 1997 has helped to increase employment participation, but many lone parents who avail of this disregard stick with the part-time employment it permits in order to retain entitlement to the one parent family payment. This is understandable as for many the benefit represents stable income security for themselves and their children, although at a relatively low level compared to the incomes a majority of other families derive from employment.

A first objective is to replace what may, in practice, be disincentives to full employment in the current schemes with more positive incentives to take up employment and avail of opportunities for education and training that can greatly increase the chances of obtaining more secure and well paid jobs.

Concern relating to the evolution of the income and other support arrangements for lone parent families has resulted in much research on the matter in recent years. These have included reports on the operation of the scheme by my Department, the NESF, consultations in 2003 and since in the context of preparation of a family strategy, and Ireland's participation in a major international comparative study by the OECD on reconciling work and family life. Ending child poverty, for which effective support for lone parent families is a key component, is also one of the special initiatives under Sustaining Progress.

It was in the context of work under this special initiative that the Cabinet Committee on Social Inclusion requested last November the senior officials group, which reports to it, to draw up a report on obstacles to employment for lone parents. The report will include not just an examination of the income support arrangements, but also child care, education and training, information, and employment and other relevant supports.

A sub-group has been established to progress the work with a view to completion of the report by mid-year. Full account will be taken, in drawing up the report, of the research carried out to date and the outcome of the extensive consultation on supports for families.

The group includes representatives of the Departments of the Taoiseach and Finance and my Department is directly involved with representatives of other Departments participating during consideration of policy issues for which they have responsibility. My Department will review the existing income support arrangements and provisions as an input to the work of the group.

It is also intended that the outcome of these reviews will contribute to final concrete proposals designed to better support and encourage lone parents in achieving a better standard of living, employment and education opportunities, and a better future for themselves and their children. These will be the main criteria against which recommendations in the reports will be judged.

Willie Penrose (Westmeath, Labour)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. Can we all accept that the best route out of poverty is through work, a proposition which is a mantra at this stage? Is it not ironic that some of the barriers to employment for lone parents and many other parents on low income have been put in place by the Minister's Department and by policy decisions taken in the Department, not by the Minister but by his predecessors in title? Will the Minister agree that some of the savage 16 cuts raised the barrier for self-sufficiency for single parents and extenuated their circumstances? The cuts were tinkered with but were not reversed.

Will the Minister agree that the abolition of the creche supplement, which allowed single parents to take up educational and training opportunities was a retrograde step? Will he agree that the cutback in the Back to Education scheme curtailed another important opportunity? There was a restriction on entitlement to the one parent family payment for those in receipt of modest earnings. There were also rent allowance restrictions.

Will the Minister agree that many lone parents and low income families will find to difficult to return to employment without assistance in terms of child care? Will he also agree that for low income earners and one parent families child care can cost all the income earned and leave such families no better off than when the parent is not working?

In respect of the one parent family payment, will he agree the income disregard which allowed lone parents to work and earn up to €146.50 was innovative? That was introduced in 1996 and people can earn up to €293 before losing that entitlement. Why was that disregard not increased? Surely the best way to tackle poverty is to ensure that as many people as possible qualify for benefit during their transition to work and that they do not lose their entitlement to ancillary benefits such as the Back to School allowance, clothing and footwear allowance, medical cards and others benefits? Is it not time we gave some substance to all the aspirational talk and ensured that those disregards, which are important in facilitating the transition from dependence on those welfare schemes to work, are all raised to facilitate that ultimately noble objective?

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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It is in that context that the Cabinet Committee on Social Inclusion last November requested the senior officials group which reports to it to draw up a report on obstacles to employment for lone parents. That report will include not just an examination of income support arrangements but also child care, education, training, information, employment and any other relevant supports. The group has been established to progress work with a view to completing it by the middle of the year. At that time full account can be taken of all the research carried out to date, and the points regarding various barriers that the Deputy has put to the House on many occasions. That group includes the Department of the Taoiseach, the Department of Finance, my Department and a number of other Departments that have an input into this area. We will examine the outcome of that work and that will allow us to review the existing income support arrangements, including the disregard. I am conscious the Deputy feels particularly strongly about the income disregard whereby lone parents who are working could earn from €146 to €293 before they lost benefit. The Deputy has made the point on a number of occasions that it has not been increased. I will keep that in mind as we go forward.

We have expressed our aspirations, dissatisfaction and ambitions in this area and it is time to get down to the hard work. The group is working strongly with very strong terms of reference. I look forward to hearing from it as soon as possible.