asked the Minister for Finance whether he will cause statistical inquiries and calculations to be made forthwith whereon a scheme of family allowances can be founded when the present emergency has passed and finance can be provided out of revenue to meet such a service.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Family Allowances Scheme.
The Government have already had under consideration the practicability of establishing a scheme of family or children's allowances suitable to the circumstances of this country. Without committing myself in any way to the adoption of any scheme for such allowances, I have appointed a small committee representative of the Departments principally concerned to go fully into the matter and furnish a report on the many complex questions involved. Such a review will necessarily take some time to complete.
Arising out of the Minister's reply, seeing that he has come so far to meet the suggestion which I have repeatedly made, of instituting a system of family allowances, by appointing an inter-Departmental committee, does he not take the view that a wider inquiry into this subject is requisite and that, in the financial circumstances in which we find ourselves, there is ample time for such an inquiry profitably to be made; and, if he does take that view, will he not agree that social workers and economists of standing should be combined to review this matter from an extrainter-Departmental point of view, without in any way committing the Government to adopt or act upon such findings as they may come to?
Having appointed this Departmental committee, I shall await that committee's report before going into the matter from any other point of view.
May I direct the attention of the Minister to the fact that an inter-Departmental committee's function is to advise him from the very important Civil Service point of view on this question? It may be that, in the light of the findings of social workers and economists, the Government would determine that policy overrode Civil Service views in connection with a problem of this kind, and in view of that would he discuss the matter with me, hereafter at least, with a view to further considering the advisability of a commission on the lines suggested in my question?
I have no objection to discussing that matter later with the Deputy or with anybody else, but I think we could usefully await the report of the Departmental committee before doing anything further in the matter.
If I know anything of such reports there will be another fence to cross before we put the work in hand, as it certainly will be put in hand some time.