Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Question 72: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the supports in place to farm operators suffering from a disability. [12042/10]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I presume the Deputy is referring to employees on farms when refers to "farm operators". If the Deputy was referring to self-employed farmers, the information he requires will be provided on request to my office.

My Department currently operates a range of schemes for people with an illness or disability including the insurance based illness benefit and invalidity pension schemes, the occupational injury benefit scheme for those who are unable to work because of an accident or illness suffered at work and the means-tested disability allowance scheme.

Farm operators normally pay Class A social insurance contributions and therefore, subject to satisfying the contribution and medical requirements, would be entitled to the full range of illness and disability payments. Should they suffer from a specified illness related to their employment or an accident while at work they can apply for injury benefit which would be paid for a period of 26 weeks.

A person who acquires an illness or disability outside the work environment, or who is still unable to work after 26 weeks of receiving injury benefit, may qualify for illness benefit. They must meet certain medical and contribution requirements in order to receive this payment which can be paid for a maximum period of 104 weeks. In the event that the person concerned is permanently incapable of working, they may qualify for Invalidity pension, subject to satisfying the medical criteria and contribution conditions associated with that scheme. A person who does not satisfy the medical and contribution conditions for illness benefit or invalidity pension, and whose means are below a prescribed level, may qualify for disability allowance instead.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)
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Question 73: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his views on whether lowering the age of the child criteria for the making of lone parent payments will result in more children living in relative poverty in view of the level of unemployment and also in view of the ESRI prediction that unemployment will not reduce until economic growth in the region of 4% to 5% is reached. [15493/10]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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At the end of 2009 there were some 90,500 lone parents in receipt of the One-Parent Family Payment at an estimated cost of €1,113 million. When other related supports and entitlements are taken into account, including Child Benefit and, where appropriate, the Rent Supplement and the Family Income Supplement, total expenditure in this area exceeds €2 billion.

Despite this significant State spending on one-parent families as well as improvements made to the One Parent Family Payment over the years, a large proportion of lone parents and their children continue to experience poverty.

The Government believes that the current arrangements, whereby a lone parent can receive the One-Parent Family Payment until their child is 18 – or 22 if in full-time education – without any requirement for them to engage in employment, education or training, are not in the best interests of the recipient, their children or society.

In general, the best route out of poverty is through paid employment. We recognise that work, and especially full-time work, may not be an option for parents of young children. However, we believe that supporting parents to participate in the labour market, once their children have reached an appropriate age, will improve both their own economic situation and the social well-being of themselves and of their families.

My Department has undertaken a comprehensive review of the One-Parent Family Payment and developed proposals that are designed to:

prevent long-term dependence on welfare and facilitate financial independence;

recognise parental choice with regard to care of young children but with the expectation that parents will not remain outside of the labour force indefinitely, and

include an expectation of participation in education, training and employment, with supports provided in this regard.

To meet these social policy objectives, I will be introducing changes to the One-Parent Family payment in the forthcoming Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, 2010. For new customers, from early 2011, it is proposed that the One-Parent Family Payment will be made until the youngest child in the lone parent family reaches age 13 years. For existing recipients of the payment there will be a phasing-out period to enable them to access education and training and to prepare them for their return to the labour market.

Under the reformed scheme, there will be special provisions to allow for the continuation of the One-Parent Family Payment for families with children for whom the Domiciliary Care Allowance is paid as well as for both married and co-habiting persons who are recently bereaved and who have children aged 13 years or older.

These changes will bring Ireland's support for lone parents more in line with international provisions, where there is a general movement away from long-term and passive income support. The EU countries that are achieving the best outcomes in terms of tackling child poverty are those that are combining strategies aimed at facilitating access to employment and enabling services (e.g. child care) with income support.