Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 13:

In page 8, after line 32, to insert the following:

“Report on child maintenance and social protection

16. The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, lay a report before both Houses of the Oireachtas on options for ensuring that lone parents’ social protection payments should not be reduced based on the potential receipt of maintenance from a third party e.g. a former spouse or partner, and for ensuring that lone parents should not be required to pursue maintenance from a former partner as a condition of receipt of social protection.”.

This is another amendment addressing the issue of child maintenance. I will not go into it at length but there is much concern. Many people are disappointed as it looks like the Government does not intend to set up a child maintenance agency and it was something people were hopeful about. This is around a specific issue related to social protection. It is an amendment around ensuring lone parent or one-parent families' social protection payments would not be reduced based on the potential receipt of maintenance from a third party such as a former spouse or partner. It is also concerned with the matter of ensuring lone parents not be required to pursue maintenance from a former partner as a condition of the receipt of social protection.

There is concern people are first of all being required to pursue maintenance when there are many reasons they are not in a position to do it. That is why there was such wide support for a maintenance agency that would take on that responsibility so it is not laid on the shoulders of persons who may have very good and legitimate reasons for not trying to pursue a former partner. The Minister will be aware that separate from the establishment of a child maintenance agency, there is a very constructive proposal from my colleague, Senator Ruane, that I hope will still be considered. It has been supported by the Women's Caucus, which includes women from right across the Houses, and would give Revenue a role in the gathering of maintenance payments.

We are aware one-parent families are extraordinarily more vulnerable to homelessness and deprivation and are absolute outliers when it comes to issues of poverty. The core point is we should not have a situation where people in that circumstance are being forced to pursue and seek maintenance from a former spouse or partner. This is especially so in situations where that might make them or their children vulnerable or affect issues such as access and custody. I note also that even where maintenance is awarded we know it is very often not paid. We should not have a situation where a person's social welfare payment is being reduced - because in theory they are getting €100 per week from a partner - if they are not getting that €100 per week from them. We should not have a situation where that rationale is used. The Minister is aware of these issues and of the different solutions to the issue of accessing maintenance but I hope in the interim we can ensure we do not have negative impacts within the social protection system. We can perhaps begin with the matters I address in my amendment.