Lisa McDonald (Fianna Fail)

I wish to comment on the amendment which seeks to provide that where two parents or guardians have joint custody of a child, the child benefit may be apportioned between them. Generally speaking, joint custody does not mean that a child lives with one parent for three days of the week and the other parent for four days of the week. It is usually the case that a child lives with a parent from Monday to Friday and then goes to the other custodian at the end of the week. If child benefit were to be split on the basis of joint custody, it would be very difficult to work out.

We have eminent judges who take a long time to examine issues such as this one. They consider the issue of income to the household and child benefit is added to that to ensure the parent involved in the normal day-to-day care of the child gets the child benefit. In a case where both parents are not very well off, the question arises as to the household in which the benefit is best placed. Where there is abuse of that position, it is always open to the parent who believes there is such abuse to go to court because applications for maintenance can always be reopened in court. While I understand the tenet of the amendment, which is honourable, it would be unworkable and the current system is sufficient to deal with it.