Arthur Spring (Kerry North-West Limerick, Labour)
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Question 251: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the reason child benefit cannot be means tested at present; her plans to implement means testing for child benefit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37085/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Child benefit assists parents with the cost of raising children and it contributes towards alleviating child poverty. Expenditure on child benefit for 2011 is estimated at €2.08 billion in respect of some 1.133 million children. The Government is conscious that child benefit, as a universal payment, can be an important source of income for all families, especially during a time of recession and high unemployment. The social protection system also provides assistance to low income families with children through the payment of qualified child increases on primary social welfare payments and through the family income supplement payment. Both of these provide a level of assistance which is directly or indirectly linked with a household's income situation.

I have announced no plans to implement means-testing or income-testing of child benefit at this time. If the Government decided in principle to progress on these lines, there are many policy, legislative and administrative issues that would have to be addressed. These include:

· From a policy perspective, detailed assessment would have to be given to a number of key questions such as the appropriate treatment of different types of income, cut-off points for family income and rates of benefit withdrawal;

· Furthermore, consideration would also need to be given to the likely consequences of income or means-testing child benefit, as there is the potential for very significant disincentive effects for income earners as it would add to reduce the return from higher earnings;

· Means testing of child benefit would address only one of the main child income support payments and a clear policy direction would have to be considered to ensure a consistent approach with other income-related payments; and

· From an administrative perspective, a new mechanism for assembling household income would have to be put in place with very considerable administrative consequences. These would include ensuring that systems are in place to ensure that households only claimed benefits to which they were entitled, as the scale of means testing approximately 600,000 families would be significantly greater than anything required by the current social protection system in terms of means tested payments.

This raises complex issues about the purpose and effectiveness of the full range of income supports provided through the social protection system. In this context and in line with a commitment in the Programme for Government, I established in June of this year an Advisory Group on Tax and Social Welfare to consider issues around these and a number of other matters. The issue of family and child income supports is currently being examined by the Group which has been tasked with recommending cost-effective solutions as to how employment disincentives can be improved and better poverty outcomes achieved, particularly child poverty outcomes.

In the circumstances, any reforms in this area should comprehensively address the broader range of issues raised before the Government decides on how to proceed for the future.

Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 252: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the reason a person (details supplied) in County Kildare has had their rent assessed at the stated rate; the mechanism available to the person to appeal the decision; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37105/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The person concerned is in receipt of her full entitlement to rent supplement based on her household circumstances. She has been assessed based on the information provided to the Department regarding the earnings of the family unit as a whole. If the person concerned wishes to appeal the decision she may do so to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.