Sheila Terry (Fine Gael)

I too want to thank staff for their work on this consolidation Bill. It was a major undertaking and I appreciate the tedious work they endured while drafting the legislation. It is important that past Acts have been consolidated into one document and the fact that this was not done since 1993 indicates the level of work involved. I also welcome the publication of any documents that would make the social welfare code more accessible and easy to understand. It will also help Members to provide information to the public.

While I want the Minister to implement a number of measures in the upcoming budget, I wish to highlight the qualified adult allowance. I ask him to improve the lot of people in receipt of that allowance, many of whom are women, who have fallen into poverty after retirement. A commitment was made in Sustaining Progress to increase the non-contributory payment and I hope the Minister will make the necessary provisions in the budget. That would be welcome and would assist many people.

By paying child dependant allowance directly to the qualified adults concerned, the recipients would be given a sense of independence. The fact that few people have opted for direct payments does not imply that many do not want to avail of this system because difficulties may arise within relationships when people choose direct payments. It would be more helpful if such a payment system is made mandatory.

The Government should meet the commitments it made on child benefit. Many families believe it has fallen behind and that benefits should be increased beyond the promises in the programme for Government.

I thank the Cathaoirleach and the Minister for bringing this Bill forward. I am happy to support it but I ask the Minister to consider the issues I have raised.