John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

85. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the nature and the scope of the review he and his Department are carrying out on lone parents; the timeframe for this report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2771/17]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

We are still at an early stage of the implementation of the reforms to the one parent family payment (OFP) and it will take several years before the full impact can be assessed. This is because many lone parents, on foot of the reforms, are taking up education, training or employment support programmes, which will take time for them to complete.

However, given the issues raised during the debate on the Social Welfare (SW) Bill 2016, I agreed that my Department would commission an independent report on the OFP reforms to examine the financial and social effects of the amendments to the scheme made since 1 January 2012, taking into account the poverty rates and welfare dependency of those impacted by the reforms. I am committed to producing the report as quickly as possible, and no later than August 2017 so that it can inform Budget 2018 discussions.

Under procurement rules it is not yet possible to provide further information on the nature of the report. However, I can say that my Department has already liaised with the Office of Government Procurement (OGP) on the most efficient way forward. On their advice an outline of the Request For Tender (RFT) was issued in December to potential providers seeking expressions of interest by 11th January 2017. The responses received confirm that the RFT can issue under an existing OGP framework. The drafting of the RFT has commenced and officials are working with the OGP to complete the procurement process. The timeframe for this report is ambitious but my Department is making every effort to progress this quickly taking account of the procurement rules.