Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I am not going to accept the amendment but I accept the point being made. There are many issues relating to the 36 rates of PRSI, the different classes, etc. I am aware of a case, which might be similar to the one to which the amendment refers, where a person who had worked as a PAYE taxpayer in a shop subsequently married the employer and then had a child. She applied for the maternity payment only to find she was ineligible for it. Had they had the child and forgot about the marriage, she would still be an employee and would have got the maternity payment. It seems odd. I will examine all these issues.

There are many possible difficulties because one must try to establish in the situation of family members that there is a real working relationship. I met those involved in one such case who were caught in this particular trap and I expressed understanding of what is, when one looks at it from the way they see it, an unusual situation. In the review of the PRSI system, the single social payment and so on, we should look at all these matters again to see whether we can improve them. We must ensure a person could not nominate all his or her family for social welfare entitlements without real work and payment input. That is the challenge in this case, which I understand is the kind of problem Senator McCarthy raises.