Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)
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Question 130: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the outcome of the pilot studies in relation to support services and activation measures for lone parents. [39514/08]

Joanna Tuffy (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
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Question 149: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the reason the Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2008 contains no provision to end the cohabitation ban for lone parents in receipt of one parent family payment. [39516/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 130 and 149 together.

The Government discussion paper, "Proposals for Supporting Lone Parents," put forward proposals to tackle obstacles to employment for lone parents and other low income families.

Under the proposals the lone parenthood category of payment would no longer exist. Instead, a new payment would be made to all parents (living alone or with a partner), with young children, on low income.

Any proposed new payment cannot be introduced without co-ordinated supports and services being put in place by other Departments and Agencies. The Senior Officials Group on Social Inclusion is working on an implementation plan to progress the non-income recommendations. Issues including access to childcare support, education, training and activation measures are being discussed with the relevant Departments and Agencies in tandem with the development of a new payment scheme.

To further inform the process, the Department, with the co-operation of FAS, the Office of the Minister for Children and the Department of Education and Science, tested the proposals in both an urban and rural setting: Coolock, Dublin and Kilkenny. These studies, which took place between November 2007 and February 2008, were carried out to facilitate the development of the policy and operational details of the new scheme. The process involved both lone parents and qualified adults. It was carried out on a voluntary basis and the take-up was low.

The experience has however highlighted how both lone parents and qualified adults are not a homogenous group, are of different ages, have experienced different routes into their current situation and have different needs. Educational levels of those who participated were generally low, there was little or no engagement with FÁS, some participants intended to return to full or part-time work when their child was a few months old; others, however, had been out of the work force for a considerable period of time. Earnings from previous employment were generally low. In Kilkenny access to transport was an issue with regard to taking up employment or training, with those outside the city of Kilkenny having problems in this regard. For almost all of those intending to return to work, affordable childcare is a critical issue.

Officials in the Department continue to work on developing the proposed new income support payment and the experience of this engagement process is feeding into the development of our approach to working with lone parents and qualified adults to support them into education, training and employment.

Michael Noonan (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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Question 131: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of claims for child benefit being processed here; the way this compares to the number of applicants being processed in the same period in 2006 and 2007; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39451/08]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The number of Child Benefit claims processed in 2008 to date and corresponding figures for 2007 and 2006 are detailed in the following table.

In addition to these claims, a further 84,000 claims for the extension of payment for children over 16 years of age were also processed in the first 10 months of 2008.