Lisa McDonald (Fianna Fail)

We need to examine the work the Minister is doing in this regard. It is one thing to crack down on those working and claiming and that is an easier task than cracking down on the not so lone parent whose boyfriend stays over so often that they are a de facto family. We also need to examine the fact that the Supreme Court decided last week that we do not have de facto families in Ireland. We need to bring our laws into line with the reality of the situation. Many families in this country exist outside the family structure provided for in our Constitution. We need to introduce laws to deal with that. If we deal with that properly, I believe the notion of a lone parent would very much dissipate.

That is not to say there are not great women, as Senator McFadden outlined in her contribution, who lift themselves out of the poverty trap, pursue further education, etc. They are fantastic women and they should be acknowledged. I was speaking to one such woman last week and this is a point I wish to raise with the Minister of State. Much of what we are talking about in this debate involves the day care of children but many of the meaningful courses one can pursue to obtain a degree or a diploma are run at night time. We need to examine the provision of child care such as babysitting arrangements, etc. for people who wish to pursue such courses who do not have that type of support. Those women exist and that support needs to be given to them because they more than anyone want to get out of the poverty trap. As we all know, the benefit of an education is fantastic.

This area needs to be reformed and such reform has started today. I welcome it. In short, we must incentivise learning and working and not a culture of earning while at the same time we must continue to protect the needy and vulnerable in our society. I would be interested to know how the needs of individuals will be met in respect of individuals pursuing a proper training course. Such a person should not be assigned a waitressing job when he or she really wants to be an artist. I know that is an extreme example but I would be interested to know how provision will be made for the needs of individuals. I acknowledge that this will be difficult and this is a delicate balance to strike. The measures in this Bill are a good start . We are following a path that is commendable. I commend the Minister on his energy and I commend this Bill to the House.