Séamus Healy (Tipperary, Workers and Unemployed Action Group)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

219. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if child benefit payments will be extended to include all children in full-time education up to 22 years of age in line with the increase for qualified children paid on social welfare payments; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18391/18]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Child Benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children in respect of all qualified children up to the age of 16 years. The payment continues to be paid in respect of children up to their 18th birthday who are in full-time education, or who have a disability. Child Benefit is currently paid to almost 628,000 families in respect of over 1.2 million children, with an estimated expenditure of more than €2 billion in 2018.

Given the universality of Child Benefit, extending entitlement to parents to include all children in full time education up to 22 years of age in line with the increase for qualified children paid on social welfare payments would not be a targeted approach. The adoption of such a proposal would have significant cost implications and would have to be considered in an overall budgetary context.

Families on low incomes can avail of a number of social welfare schemes that support children in full-time education until the age of 22, including:

- Increase for a Qualified Child (IQCs) with primary social welfare payments;

- the Working Family Payment (formerly Family Income Supplement) for low-paid employees with children;

- the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance for low income families (paid at the full-time second-level education rate).

As part of the measures under Budget 2018, the qualified child payment which is paid each week to families with children was increased from €29.80 to €31.80 for each child. This is an increase of 6.7%, and will benefit over 400,000 children. The Working Family Payment earnings thresholds were also increased by €10 per week for families with up to three children. This will particularly benefit low-income working families. These schemes provide targeted assistance that is directly linked to household income and thereby support low-income families with older children participating in full-time education.

For parents who have children in third level education, the student grant scheme, SUSI, is the main financial support for students. There is detailed information on the range of grants and funds for students in further and higher education on the website www.studentfinance.ie, including the Student Assistance Fund.

I currently have no plans to extend entitlement to Child Benefit to include all children in full time education up to 22 years of age and any changes to entitlements would need to be considered as part of Budget 2019 discussions.