Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

51. To ask the Minister for Social Protection her plans to reverse the proposed changes to the one-parent family payment which will take effect in July 2015; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4915/15]

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

There are currently 69,884 lone parents being supported by the one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme at an estimated cost to my Department of approximately €607 million in 2015.

The purpose of the phased OFP scheme age change reforms that were introduced in the Social Welfare and Pensions Act, 2012, is to reduce long-term social welfare dependency and poverty among lone parents and to ensure that they have improved access to the Department’s range of education, training, and employment support programmes in order to assist them in securing employment.

The final phase of the OFP scheme age change reforms will take place on 2 July, 2015, when the maximum age limit of the youngest child at which an OFP recipient’s payment ceases will be reduced to 7 years for all recipients. It is anticipated that approximately 30,200 OFP recipients will transition out of the OFP scheme on that day. These customers will be supported by my Department to transition to an alternative income support payment – as appropriate.

The introduction of the Back to Work Family Dividend as announced in Budget 2015 provides a further incentive for jobseekers and OFP recipients to avail of employment opportunities by allowing them to retain their increase for a qualified child when they leave welfare for employment or self-employment. It is estimated that approximately 9,600 lone parents who transition off their OFP payment will transfer to the family income supplement and as such will qualify for the Back to Work Family Dividend.

There are no plans to review the OFP age reforms.