Lisa McDonald (Fianna Fail)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank the Labour Party for putting this important issue on the agenda. Investment in our children is an investment in the economy, as well as forming young people's social behaviour and removing them from the cycle of unemployment and crime. As a result of such an investment, they will hopefully be able to fulfil their own needs and abilities.

As time is limited, I wish to hone in on a couple of points. It has been stated that children from one-parent, low-income families are more inclined to fall into the poverty trap than others. Fathers need to play a bigger role in their children's lives. Under the Constitution, children who are not in a married family system do not count, which is a disgrace. We are unfairly discriminating against such children so the relevant constitutional amendment should be put to the people. If that referendum is passed, we will in future not have the stark statistics that were mentioned by Senator O'Toole. Someone will bring a test against the State on the basis that they were not served correctly concerning abuse or did not receive help or whatever intervention is required for a child. That is a quantum leap we need to take as a society, a Government and a people.

We must accept that a child is not a commodity that can be thrown from Billy to Jack by parents who sometimes do not care about them. Children in the poverty cycle are less likely to complete their education and more likely to be unemployed as adults. I acknowledge that we have done a lot in this regard, including the stated goals in Towards 2016. An unprecedented level of investment has been made but I am not here to reflect on past glories, I want to examine the improvements we can make in future. If we are not willing to go forward there is not much point in us being here at all.

We should examine how the courts can deal effectively with domestic violence, a problem that is not taken seriously at present. While some fathers want to be responsible for their children, others do not and are unwilling to pay maintenance. We are talking about increasing child income supports to 33% of the minimum adult's social welfare payment, but many children do not receive the benefit of such payments. I have seen numerous examples where people put that money towards paying off a mortgage. That may help them to keep a roof over their heads, but too often parents see the children's allowance as a payment for themselves and not for the child. We need to look at other ways of intervening to ensure that children benefit from such payments.

In my area, HSE employees who work in child support services are excellent and have the best intentions. However, we need a separate agency to deal with child poverty and such an agency should have full funding under the aegis of a Minister. We should appoint a senior Minister to deal with this area, thus avoiding departmental overlaps which currently mean that children fall between two stools. As we reach our goal in Towards 2016, now is the time to prioritise investment in this matter. We have had enough inquiries and reports about abuse of children. There is a well established link between poverty and child abuse. We know the answers to many of the questions so we need to move forward now and act. Children who fall into the justice system or health board care will reoffend in future because they are trapped in a poverty cycle. We have done a lot in the education sector but we need to examine other areas, including family law, to bring a holistic approach to bear in solving this problem.