Gerald Nash (Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Minister is very welcome to the Chamber. Before I commence my remarks, I acknowledge that in her public utterances she has demonstrated a commitment to bringing about a reduction in the incidence of child poverty, including the children of lone parents and lone parents. That is a laudable objective. She has demonstrated in the budget that she is committed to doing this. As Senator Gerard P. Craughwell said, no amount of money will satisfy everybody, but if significant progress can be made to reduce the level of consistent poverty among children in the coming years, it will be welcomed and supported by all parties. We might differ on how the Minister should arrive at that objective and the quantum of resources she is in a position to apply to achieving it.

Over a period it is fair to say, objectively, that some positive developments and changes have been implemented to support one-parent families. The back-to-work family dividend is a policy change I very much supported in 2015 to ensure those who had been out of the workforce for a considerable period would be financially supported to get back to work. Much discussion has taken place in this Chamber and the Lower House about the impact of the one-family payment measures when they were introduced in 2013 and the structure was changed.

As the Indecon report has demonstrated, some one-parent families have become financially better off and accessed opportunities in the workplace over a period for a range of reasons. I had a detailed look at the Indecon report earlier and it is fair to say that while there are some positives in it, there are also some negatives. In accepting that there are some positives and that the experience of a good number of individuals has been extremely positive, the universal experience has not been positive. A significant number of lone parents have benefited from the measures and there is evidence support that claim, but I think the Minister would acknowledge that much more work needs to be undertaken by the Department and the system in general to ensure there will be tailored supports in place for lone parents because they are not a homogenous, monolithic group; they are human beings with their own difficulties and challenges. I welcome the remarks made by the Minister about tailoring and customising supports for lone parents because the system does not capture every single experience in the way we might like.

I was particularly drawn to a remark made by the authors of the Indecon report which stated many of the individuals surveyed said a job had helped them to make more money, develop new skills and improve confidence and, importantly, the well-being of lone parents and their children.It is a critical point and very vocal critics of the measures introduced in 2013 need to be conscious of that, while accepting that the positive experience has not been universal.

The report pointed to a number of problems. An area of concern referenced by my colleague, Senator Butler, was the fact that there are still stubbornly high numbers of lone parents who are unemployed or underemployed, as well as lone parents who, for a variety of reasons - possibly predominantly because of their caring and child rearing duties - are in low-paid, part-time and precarious employment.

The Minister knows from the work undertaken by the Low Pay Commission that there is a preponderance of women in receipt of the national minimum wage, a very high number of whom are lone parents. We also know there is a prevalence of women in precarious working situations for a variety of reasons. Given the Minister's stated determination to address child poverty and poverty among lone parent families, I implore her to work very closely with the Low Pay Commission to ensure the Government follows through on its commitment of a national minimum wage of €10.50 per hour, inadequate though it may be, during its lifetime.

The Minister can also ensure that the area of precarious work is better addressed. She will be aware of my commitment in that area and the University of Limerick study two years ago which made significant recommendations to Government on addressing the scourge of if-and-when contracts and precarious work in general. There are still far too many people in this country going to bed on a Sunday night not knowing how many hours they will work the following week and, therefore, how much they will earn. As a society, the least we can do is to make sure we make the necessary changes to support people who are working and those who want to work, and allow them to have the dignity which comes with that in order to reach their full potential as active citizens in terms of employment.

The best Christmas present the Minister could provide for low-paid workers in this country is to meet the commitments of this Government and the previous Administration, and legislate to ensure precarious work is addressed in a comprehensive way in order to support people who get up early in the morning and make their contribution to our society and their families. I want as many citizens as possible in this country to work, as does the Minister and everybody in the House. Those who are able to work and those in a position to work should be able to do so.

I have seen too many lives and communities destroyed by a lack of available work and because a system has written them off in terms of working activity at far too early a time in their lives. That has a destructive impact on the dignity of the person, communities and family life. The Minister knows work is much more than a weekly or monthly pay cheque. It also includes engaging fully in society as an active citizen. It is about real inclusion and equality. It is about self-respect and the dignity of work.

Having said that, we need to make sure we continue to learn from the lessons of the recent past and try to make sure we have a properly resourced, strong and robust system in place in order to be able to support lone parents as country who are doing a remarkable job under extremely difficult circumstances. The system needs to be much more responsive to the individual needs of people because, as I said, we are all human beings with different needs.

Lone parents, no more than any other cohort in society, are not a homogenous, monolithic group. They need tailored, customised support and I ask the Minister to reflect very deeply on the report developed by the Joint Committee on Social Protection, take what is best from it and apply it to her work.