Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
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21. To ask the Minister for Social Protection his plans to change the legislation in relation to liable relatives who have moved from the one parent family payment to jobseeker's transition; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28749/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Family Law Acts, which are under the remit of the Department of Justice and Equality (D/JE), place a legal obligation on parents to maintain their children. In cases where the family unit has broken down these obligations continue to apply and relevant maintenance payments can be arranged either directly between the couple or through supports like the Family Mediation Service, the Legal Aid Board and the Courts. The arrangement of maintenance is therefore a matter between both parents regardless of whether or not either parent is in receipt of a social welfare payment.

The liability to maintain family provisions, contained in social welfare legislation, are separate to, and do not negate or supersede parents’ obligations under Family Law. Where a lone parent is in receipt of the One-Parent Family Payment (OFP), the liability to maintain family provisions provide my Department with a legislative basis to carry out an assessment against the other parent and issue a Determination Order for them to pay a contribution either to the Department or the lone parent.

Where the OFP payment ceases, and the Department had successfully arranged a contribution from the other parent (which only occurs in less than 8% of cases), the Department must inform the other parent that his/her liability to the Department has ceased. The letter does not inform the other parent that s/he is no longer liable to pay maintenance and makes it clear that any existing maintenance arrangements private or otherwise should remain in place. These letters have always issued when the OFP payment ceases.

The Department is currently reviewing the liability to maintain family provisions.