Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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33. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the extent to which she expects one-parent families to be in a position to access family income supplement, or other support payments, in the wake of reductions in the one-parent family allowance, with particular reference to the need to ensure that the incomes of such families are adequately protected; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9291/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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As of the end of January there were approximately 69,700 recipients of the One Parent Family Payment (OFP) scheme at an expected cost of €607 million in 2015. The final phase of the one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme age change reforms will be taking 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.

Approximately 30,200 OFP recipients will be transitioning out of the OFP scheme on 2 July, 2015. All of these customers who continue to need income support will be transitioned to another welfare income support payment. It is expected that approximately 9,600 lone parents will access the family income supplement and approximately 20,000 will access a jobseeker’s payment including the jobseeker’s allowance transitional arrangement.

Customers caring for a child who is in receipt of domiciliary care allowance will not be affected by the July changes. There are approximately 1,650 of these lone parents. I have also received Government approval to extend of entitlement to OFP for all lone parents who are entitled to OFP and the carer’s allowance payment until their youngest child turns 16 years of age or the lone parent is no longer entitled to the OFP or carer’s allowance payments. As a result the 800 customers who were due to lose entitlement to OFP in July will now retain their OFP and half-rate carer’s allowance payment subject to the necessary legislative amendments being enacted. I intend to bring forward a Committee Stage amendment in the Social Welfare Bill 2015 to give effect to the Government's decision.