Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 74: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the degree of progress for the completion of his Department's technical review of the social welfare code to examine its compatibility with the Equal Status Act 2000; the cost of the project to date; the reason this review is being handled in part by parties outside his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32204/07]

Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The review of the social welfare code to examine its compatibility with the Equal Status Act, 2000 (as amended), which is currently being undertaken in my Department, will examine all the schemes and services provided for both in social welfare legislation and the administrative schemes operated by the Department. It will identify any instances of direct or indirect discrimination, on any of the nine grounds under the Act that are not justified by a legitimate social policy objective or where the means of achieving that objective are either unnecessary or inappropriate.

A decision was taken in my Department that the review would take place in two phases. Phase 1 involved the undertaking of a scoping exercise to establish the most appropriate approach and methodology to carrying out the main review, which would be robust and verifiable. Following a tendering process, the contract for carrying out Phase 1 of the project was awarded in February 2006 to Mel Cousins and Professor Gerry Whyte of Trinity College. That work was completed in September 2006. The results of Phase 1 have formed the basis of the terms of reference of the main review.

Following discussion by the Project Board for the review and the Department's Management Committee, a decision was made that the carrying out the main review should be put out to tender. This decision was taken on the basis of the comprehensive nature of the review and the significant time resources and the legal knowledge necessary to carry out the review in addition to a comprehensive knowledge of the social welfare system.

The request for tender document issued on 17 April 2007, having been examined and cleared for issuing by the Office of the Attorney General. It was placed on the Government's e-tender website and in the Official Journal of the EU.

Consultants Mel Cousins and Professor Gerry Whyte and associates were appointed to carry out the review and a contact was signed on 18 July 2007. The work commenced in October 2007. It is due to be completed at the end of 2008.

An advertisement was placed in the national and regional newspapers on the week commencing 19 November 2007 inviting submissions from interested organisations and individuals as to any areas in which they feel that the social welfare code may not comply with the principles of the Equal Status Acts. Information regarding the review and inviting submissions has also been placed on the Department's website.

The cost of Phase 1 of the project was €32,800 (exclusive of VAT). Phase 2 of the project will cost €203,500 (exclusive of VAT).