Jim Higgins
Question:2 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Taoiseach if he will give one Minister overall responsibility for family affairs; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Responsibility for Family Affairs.
The Minister for Social Welfare, Deputy Woods, has a major role in providing family and child income support through the social welfare system. He also represents the Government at international and European conferences and seminars which focus on the family.
The Minister for Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Taylor, in addition to his responsibilities for promoting and implementing equality of treatment for persons experiencing disability, disadvantage or discrimination, has responsibility for implementing the Government's programme of family law reform.
I am entirely satisfied with the manner in which these and other functions are presently distributed among various Ministers and I have no proposals to alter these arrangements.
As the Deputy will be aware, the United Nations has designated 1994 as the International Year of the Family. In recognition of this, the Government has established an interdepartmental committee, under the aegis of the Minister for Social Welfare, to organise and co-ordinate a programme of events to mark the occasion.
In addition, as announced by the Minister for Finance in his Budget Statement, a steering committee representing voluntary family organisations, which was established in 1992 to undertake preparations for the year, will receive a grant of £400,000 from the Government to assist it in these preparations. The interdepartmental committee will work closely with the steering committee to undertake preparations for the year.
In view of the fact, as the Taoiseach said, that 1994 has been designated as the International Year of the Family and that Article 41 of the Constitution is devoted to the family, describing it as the natural, primary and fundamental unit of society, guaranteeing to protect it as the necessary basis of social order and as indispensable to the welfare of the nation and the State, does the Taoiseach accept that the family is in crisis in society given that there are 100,000 broken marriages, that in the region of 200,000 children — the victims — are caught up in this situation and that one out of every five children is born to single parents? Does the Taoiseach agree that rather than holding a series of events what is needed is one co-ordinating Department given that at present the Departments of Social Welfare, Health and Equality and Law Reform are involved?
I think the Deputy has made his point.
Very effectively.
I do not agree with the Deputy that I should replace the Ministers for Equality and Law Reform, Social Welfare and Health and give one single Ministry responsibility for their various functions. This is the International Year of the Family and the Deputy can be assured that the Government will participate in the celebrations in every way it can. I do recognise that there are problems of marriage breakdown and I have a passionate concern for people in this difficulty. The Government's programme in that regard is quite clear.
Does the Taoiseach consider taxing the family home an anti-family matter?
The taxation of the family home has been in existence for some years. The Deputy's own party was a member of the Government for about three years and I did not see any changes mooted in that regard.
Will the Taoiseach not accept that many of the agencies of State, and particularly many of the structures of State, discriminate against the family and assist the breakdown of family life? I speak in particular of the PAYE income tax code.
That is quite an extension of the question.
We are talking about the property tax and the family income.
Now it has become very wide indeed.
Will the Taoiseach agree that waht is needed is a properly-funded service for counselling, mediation and other services to stabilise the family as the fundamental unit of society under one Government agency, particularly this year?
The Government has demonstrated its concern in this regard in the budget by making substantial allocations to assist the mediation and counselling service because we believe that there should be an adequate counselling service for people who get into difficulties in family life, to try to counsel them and point them in the direction for the future. It is not true that the family is not particularly recognised in the context of social welfare payments. There is discrimination in favour of larger families in the social welfare code in relation to child dependants and child benefit. The larger the family the more child benefit is paid. I cannot accept what the Deputy says.