Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 69: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of people in receipt of the one parent family payment; the amount paid; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26178/07]

Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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Question 70: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his views on the introduction of a cost of returning to work allowance to lone parents and other parents on low income moving from social welfare to work, in order to reflect the costs involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26179/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 69 and 70 together.

There are currently some 84,400 people, with approximately 137,700 children, in receipt of the one parent family payment. The annual cost of the scheme is €835 million.

The Government discussion paper, "Proposals for Supporting Lone Parents," put forward a range of proposals for removing obstacles to employment for lone parents and other low income families. These proposals include the expanded availability of education and training opportunities for lone parents and other parents on low income; the extension of the National Employment Action Plan to focus on lone parents; focused provision of childcare; improved information services for lone parents and the introduction of a new social assistance payment for low income families with young children. The paper also proposed the abolition of the cohabitation rule as a condition for receipt of the proposed social assistance payment.

One of the proposals in the report was that the upper income limit for the new social assistance payment should be set at €400 per week. This proposal was implemented in Budget 2007, which in effect meant that the upper income limit increased by more than one third in two years. This disregard means that a lone parent can earn up to €400 per week and still receive one-parent family payment. This will also be the case with the proposed new social assistance payment.

The new social assistance payment, under development in my Department, has the long term aim of assisting people to achieve financial independence through supporting them to enter employment — the avenue that is widely agreed to offer the best route out of poverty.

As the Deputy knows, any proposed new payment can only be introduced when the necessary co-ordinated supports and services are put in place to help ease that transition from social welfare to employment. Income supports from my Department include earnings disregards currently in place for the One Parent Family Payment and also Family Income Supplement, which is a weekly tax-free payment for families, including one-parent families, at work on low pay.

The non-income proposals contained in the Government discussion paper on childcare, education, training and activation supports are currently being progressed by the Senior Officials Group on Social Inclusion, with the cooperation of the relevant Departments and Agencies.

As part of this process, my Department, with the co-operation of FAS, the Office of the Minister for Children and the Department of Education and Science, is testing the non-income activation proposals in Coolock, Dublin and in Kilkenny. These tests are focused on identifying and resolving any practical and administrative issues that may arise in advance of the scheme being introduced. The tests are expected to run until the end of the year, with a report then being made to the Cabinet Committee on Social Inclusion. They will allow for operational and logistical co-ordination between the relevant Departments and Agencies to be considered. They will also facilitate the development of the policy and operational details of the new scheme and accompanying supports.

Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Question 71: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the actions his Department is taking to combat food poverty. [25883/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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My Department through its various social insurance and assistance schemes provides income supports to people to meet their basic living needs, including food, clothing, heat and light. Supplements are also payable in certain circumstances for specific needs, for example fuel allowances, rent supplements, living alone allowance for older people or the household benefits package for pensioners, eligible disabled people and carers. Where people on low incomes have particular medical conditions or dietary requirements, diet supplements are available through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme which is administered on my behalf by the Community Welfare division of the Health Service Executive. It is expected that expenditure on diet supplements will amount to €5.4 million this year and benefit over 10,000 people.

My Department also provides funding for school meals through two programmes, the urban school meals scheme and the local projects scheme. School meals make a real and important contribution to ensuring that children receive better nutrition. Such services can also contribute to improved school attendance and quality of learning. In 2007, approximately 165,000 pupils in 1,800 schools will benefit from the scheme at a cost of some €28m. The number of meals being provided on a daily basis to disadvantaged children through the school meals local projects scheme doubled from 89,915 in the school year 2005/2006 to 179,660 in the school year 2006/2007.

The school meals scheme is currently providing meals to over 165,000 children. The scheme is a direct intervention providing meals to children experiencing or at risk of poverty and it is reaching the most disadvantaged children. My Department is involved in a Healthy Food for All initiative to draw up a code of best practice for school meals.

Healthy eating is affected by dietary and nutritional awareness, cultural attitudes and access to good quality grocery shopping, as well as to the adequacy of social welfare income supports. In recent years, budgetary increases in social welfare payment rates have consistently exceeded increases in the cost of living. This key policy is the primary focus of Budget allocations to my Department each year, and it has helped ensure that those depending on social welfare experience real improvement in their ability to meet their basic needs, including provision of adequate food, heating, etc.

Consumer price index information from the Central Statistics Office indicates that the cost of food and non-alcoholic beverages has increased by 2.7% over the past 12 months. From December 2001 to date, food and non-alcoholic beverages increased by just 6.8% in aggregate while increases in social welfare payment rates increased by between 61% and 77% in the same period. As overall total inflation amounted to 22.7% in that period, there has been a very significant real increase in purchasing power for people on social welfare.

I am satisfied that the policy of providing substantial real increases in primary social insurance and assistance payment rates has been effective in ensuring that those who depend on social welfare income have sufficient income for healthy food.

Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 72: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will develop new support measures for surviving spouses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26188/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Widows and widowers can qualify for one of a number of different schemes depending on their particular circumstances. The contributory widow(er)'s pension is available to those who satisfy the necessary PRSI contribution conditions, either on their own record or that of the deceased spouse. Those qualifying for this benefit are not subject to a means test.

Those without the necessary PRSI contributions can, if they have qualifying children, receive the one-parent family payment. Widow(er)s without dependant children who do not qualify for the contributory payment may, if they are under 66 years of age, qualify for widow(er)'s non-contributory pension, or the State non-contributory pension if they are over 66 years of age.

The widowed parent grant, introduced in 2000, also provides additional assistance to those with children and is paid in addition after death payments such as the bereavement grant, currently €850. This grant was increased by €1,300 to €4,000 in the last Budget in recognition of the particular difficulties faced by widows and widowers with children on the death of a spouse.

One of the key objectives of the 2007 social welfare package was to protect and enhance the value of all weekly rates of payment, in relative terms, by giving increases which are well in excess of projected inflation for this year. Younger widows and widowers receiving the widow/er's non-contributory pension (aged under 66) and the one parent family payment, benefited from a €20 per week increase, or 12.1%, in the weekly rates of payment. This increase brings the rates of payment for widows and widowers under age 66 to €185.80 per week for non-contributory payments, and €191.30 for contributory payments. Widows and widowers over 66 years of age receive the same rate of payment as those applying to State pensions. Increases in the rates of child benefit and child dependent allowance also assist those widowed with children.

Widowed persons are also entitled to the fuel allowance, back to school clothing and footwear allowance and other secondary benefits on the same basis as other social welfare recipients. I will continue to keep the range and adequacy of the supports provided under review.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 73: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the action he has taken in respect of the commitment in the Programme for Government to examine the possibility of introducing a paternity benefit. [26261/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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Responsibility for questions relating to entitlement to paternity leave rests with the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. The question of a social insurance funded payment for paternity leave would be contingent on an underlying entitlement to statutory paternity leave.

While male employees are not entitled under Irish law to either paid or unpaid paternity leave, they may be entitled to parental leave. Parental leave entitles both parents who qualify to take a period of up to 14 weeks' unpaid leave from employment in respect of children aged up to eight years of age. There is no provision for a social insurance based payment for periods of parental leave, but employees may be entitled to credited contributions to maintain their social insurance record for the period.

The introduction of paid parental leave or paternity leave would have significant cost implications for employers and/or the Exchequer and the social insurance fund. Any proposals for introducing any such payments would have to be examined with regard to its effect on the sustainability of the social insurance fund and employers costs in terms of global competitiveness and in the case of paternity leave would require legislation on the part of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to provide for a statutory entitlement to the leave.