Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

104. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the extent to which a loss of income has been experienced by lone parents working part time following the introduction of revised payment structure in the current year, with particular reference to those on local authority housing lists, who rely on rent support and are subject to rapidly increasing rental market; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30871/14]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme supports 76,249 recipients at an estimated cost of €863 million in 2014.The OFP scheme is in the process of being reformed. These reforms are reducing on a phased basis, the maximum age limit of the youngest child at which an OFP recipient’s payment ceases to 7 years from 2014 for new entrants and from 2015 for existing recipients. On 3 July the latest phase of the OFP reforms was implemented when 5,140 lone parents lost their entitlement to OFP. It is expected that most affected OFP recipients will apply for a jobseeker’s allowance (JA) payment. The majority of these customers will not suffer any reduction in their new payment as they are not working.

Affected lone parents who apply for a JA payment and who have a child aged under 14 years will be entitled to the JA transitional arrangement. This arrangement exempts these lone parents from having to be genuinely seeking, and available for, full-time employment. This enables lone parents with young children who are working part-time – e.g. mornings only – to remain in work and to receive income and activation supports as appropriate. This arrangement allows them to balance their caring responsibilities and significantly reduces their requirement for childcare.

However, lone parents who are working and who transfer to JA may suffer a reduction in their payment due to the fact that the JA means test is less generous than the OFP means test. The exact amount of this reduction will depend on the customers’ earnings. However, the Department has advised all individuals that where they work a minimum of 19 hours per week or can increase their hours to that level, to apply for the family income supplement (FIS) as this is the most beneficial income support available to them.

Lone parents, who were previously in receipt of both the OFP and the family income supplement (FIS) concurrently, will suffer a loss when their entitlement to OFP ceases. However, these customers will have their FIS payment automatically adjusted to compensate for 60% of the loss of their OFP payment.

With regard to lone parents who are in receipt of rent supplement, this is a means tested payment. Therefore a change in income received by a client, including the loss of their OFP payment, invariably means a change in entitlement. This should be communicated to a community welfare officer who will review the client’s case and if appropriate adjust their rent supplement entitlement.

The Department’s staff in the Community Welfare Service have considerable experience in dealing with customers and will continue to make every effort to ensure that their accommodation needs are met. Staff have discretionary powers to award a supplement for rental purposes in exceptional cases where it appears that the circumstances of the case so warrant, for example, when dealing with applicants who are homeless or who are at risk of losing their tenancy. Such cases are examined on a case by case basis having regard to the situation presented.

Policy in relation to local authority housing lists is a matter for the Department of the Environment, Community, and Local Government.