Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 154: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance if it is the case that the one parent family tax credit may be claimed by individuals who mind their children for only a handful of occasions in a year or not at all, pay no maintenance, and bear little or no cost of rearing the children; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30328/07]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The one-parent family tax credit is a credit that can be claimed by a single parent (whether widowed, single, deserted, separated or divorced) who has a dependent child resident with him/her for the whole or part of the relevant tax year. The Revenue Commissioners deem this requirement to be met if the child is so resident for at least one night during the year. The payment or non-payment of maintenance, as the case may be, by such a single parent is not a determining factor in entitlement to the one-parent family tax credit in respect of children of a claimant.