Dan Boyle (Green Party)

——with regard to proper wealth distribution in our society. I have had many arguments in the past regarding the definition of poverty. Although Government policy is that we should use the measurement of consistent poverty, the concept of poverty is relative. We are a relatively rich society but the extremes of wealth and those without in our society is still unacceptable. We should always aim to have policies to put that balance into a proper perspective.

We are doing that. A number of choices were made in this year's budget and are being followed through with this Social Welfare Bill. They address certain sections of society and how their needs should be addressed. I am especially happy at the move in adult dependant allowances making as much progress as it has. Those who are most discriminated against in our social welfare code are women, as a result of this distinction.

By choice or economic necessity, sometimes underlined by legislation, women have at times been forced to stay in the family home and contribute their working abilities that way rather than having the choice to work in the general economy. It is only a generation ago when we were forcing people out of the Civil Service and the banks were forcing people out of their employment in order to conform with some kind of social etiquette which dictated that women should not be economically involved. As a result, people's social welfare and pension entitlements have been affected, and it is only now we are beginning to address that imbalance.

There are other areas, particularly relating to children, which are being considered more kindly. Last year's movement on child development allowances was extended again this year. Looking at how such payments can be brought together with similar payments bodes well to how we deal with the role of children, in particular, with social welfare. The difficulty in the past has been that the debate has solely been structured on child care elements, but this may have been out of necessity. This has included the child benefit and supplementary child care payment.

If we are to properly tackle the key issue of poverty among children it must be through particular payments such as child development allowances and the role of family income supplement. I would go further and I know I am going beyond the scope of Government policy in this regard. I believe that only by considering the taxation and social welfare systems and introducing the concept of refundable tax credits can we fully address most of the poverty traps that exist. We need to be more proactive in this area because while we have not rewarded those with the most means in society by way of tax cuts and we have rewarded those who are dependent on the State in terms of social welfare, those who are neutral in this budget are of necessity, because we have no means and we have chosen to have no means, those largely on low incomes.

There have been some changes in family income supplement and other supplementary payments. However, the sector of society that needs most direction and assistance in terms of income maintenance and improvement is the working poor, as they have been described, people who are in employment but not earning the type of remuneration that allows them to advance either individually or in terms of their families. I would like to see more attention paid to this sector of the population in coming years.

People have been doing their maths on the pension increases and by dividing the difference between €300 and €208 by five years have suggested that €14 is somehow a decrease in what had been promised. However, people tend to forget that in the intervening years of the term of the Government there will be economic growth. There will be a rise in inflation, regardless of how large that might be. The likelihood is that the increases from here on will not be €18 every year but some variant of it, maybe €14 this year, €16 next year and perhaps €22 in the fifth year. The target will be reached. It is a commitment of Government and I am confident it can be reached.

In the wider sense of where we are on the question of pensions, the publication of the Green Paper shows the policy direction we should be following. We will have the benefit of wider debate in the next year because the Minister for Social and Family Affairs has promised the publication of a White Paper after the completion of a consultation process that will be completed in June and July of next year. Once we have that information we can not only review the State pension and meet that target, but we can also consider the more important issue of how everyone in a rapidly ageing society can look forward to a lifetime of security by ensuring access to pensions for all is supported through effective Government policies. I am confident that can and will be done.