Averil Power (Fianna Fail)

I echo many of the comments that have been made. On Second Stage, I made the point that I would support any reform of the one-parent family payment which will make a difference and led to positive outcomes for lone parents. As the Minister is aware, the reforms that were put in train by the previous Government have not fully kicked in yet. There has already been a major change whereby the age limit relating to the youngest child - whereby the parent is obliged to go out and seek work - has been reduced from 22 to 14. In light of the current economic environment and the lack of job opportunities in general, there will be a cohort of lone parents who will be seeking work and who will require a great deal of support. These people will need access to activation measures and will need to work with social welfare officers, the staff of SOLAS and others in order that they will have proper individual plans which will ensure that they will obtain meaningful employment rather than just being pushed into low-paid jobs. There is a job to be done in the next couple of years in the context of coming to terms with what is an already significant reform of the one-parent family system. I am concerned that this will not be done properly if all of those whose children are over seven years age are forced out to seek employment.

I welcome the comment the Minister made in the Dáil last week in respect of child care. I agree with my colleagues that there is nothing wrong with the amendments that have been tabled and that they merely give effect to the Minister's words. This has been noted by people on both sides of the House. I urge the Minister to reconsider the position and to make a statement that will allow individual lone parents and the organisations which represent them to rest assured that the Government actually has a plan. Concerns have been expressed to me to the effect that, for example, the Pathways to Work initiative does not refer to child care. It is amazing that a significant change such as that before the House was announced in the budget in the absence of consultation and without any reference - until now - to child care.

If the Minister can introduce a much better child care system during the next two to three years, I will support her 110%. Regardless of how matters currently stand in the context of our priorities, we must consider areas such as that under discussion. As we make choices between different Departments and as we are obliged to manage with scarce resources, it will be necessary, in respect of education and other areas, to divert money towards younger people in order to give them the best chance in life. I would fully support that. However, it is difficult to have faith that what I have described will be done if an amendment which merely seeks to give effect to what the Minister intends to do and to include in the legislation the reassurance she has provided is going to be rejected. If the amendment is rejected, it will be fair for people to ask why this is the case, particularly if the Government has genuine confidence in its own announcements.

When the Minister was not present earlier, I stated that ultimately we want to move people away from passive dependency on welfare and into work. The reality is that the one-parent family payment, as current structured, is the least passive of all of the welfare payments. As a result of the income disregards and other incentives, most lone parents actually work. Statistics indicate that between 50% to 60% work and a further 20% are in education. I appreciate that the system could be improved but it does, as it stands, have benefits.

Senator Zappone referred to the fact that we are not being given the opportunity - we were also denied it in the debate on the previous social welfare legislation - to discuss the income disregards, which really are key. Those disregards are extremely important for children whose parents are being pushed onto the dole and for lone parents who are going to be affected by the changes being introduced in respect of them. The disregards were put in place to ensure that people could retain their social welfare payments while also moving into the workplace. This allowed them to mix welfare and employment and not be welfare dependent. At present, someone can earn €146 per week and still retain his or her welfare payment. It is astonishing that the Government is intent on reducing this threshold to €60 over a five-year period. This is an incredibly regressive step.

We are concentrating here on the fact that seven is too young but, as Senator Zappone stated, we are not being given the opportunity to discuss the income disregards. I am of the view that this matter must be considered in the round. It must also be examined in the context of whether the Government has an activation plan for the parents to whom I refer which will allow them to obtain meaningful employment and which will not merely mean that they will be transferred from one social welfare payment to another. I refer here to their being dumped on the dole and not provided with any real support. If such a transfer is envisaged, it will lead to an already vulnerable and large group of parents and children and making their situation worse.

I do not doubt the personal commitment the Minister gave in the Dáil. Like other Senators, however, I am concerned that if she does not hold the same position in the Government when we come to discuss this matter next year, then the point will be moot because the House will have passed legislation in the absence of any guarantee in respect of the people who are going to be affected. I urge the Minister to reconsider this matter.