I am pleased to introduce the second of two Bills implementing the £850 million social welfare package under budget 2002 to the House. Senators will recall that a separate Bill was enacted in December 2001, giving effect to the substantial increases in weekly social welfare payments from the beginning of January 2002 and to PRSI payments from 1 March this year. This Bill implements a number of key improvements in the social welfare scheme, such as increases in child benefit, improvement in payments for carers and also includes a range of other measures.
The Government is committed to social inclusion and I am proud to say that, since 1997, we have more than fulfilled our commitments in this respect. It is worth reflecting on some of the key achievements in the area of social welfare over the past five years. Overall social welfare spending has increased from £4.5 billion in 1997 to £7.4 billion this year; pensions have increased by 49% for a single person and by 54% for a couple, well ahead of the £100 per week target that was originally set in the action programme; the lowest social welfare rates have increased by 43% for a single person and 48% for a couple; there have been substantial increases in child benefit rates, more than treble what was paid in 1997; significant improvement for carers will result in over 22,000 carers receiving payment in 2002, compared to 9,700 in 1997; and new family services to protect the family and support the stability of family life have also been introduced.
There have been many other improvements in the area of social welfare, such as the relaxation of means tests rules, new pro rata pensions, accelerated increases in qualified adult allowances, extension of the free schemes to the over-70s, introduction of new employment supports and earlier implementation of the social welfare increases to 1 January. All these combine to enhance the position of elderly people, carers, disabled people and other vulnerable groups in our society. The success of these measures in improving the standard of living of the most marginalised sections of our community is borne out by the latest research data, published by the ESRI. This report shows that the level of consistent poverty, as targeted by the national anti-poverty strategy, has been significantly reduced from 10% in 1997 to 6.2% in 2000, which is the last year for which figures are available. Obviously, these figures have come down even more substantially since then. In practical terms, this means that 200,000 people have been lifted out of poverty. In addition, consistent poverty among children has halved from 17% in 1997 to 8% in 2000. Again, this figure will have been substantially reduced by 2002.
The Government recognises that considerable challenges remain and we are determined to build on our achievements. The revised national anti-poverty strategy, Building an Inclusive Society, was formally launched by the Taoiseach and myself earlier this month. This publication is the outcome of a process committed to under the PPF. It involved a review of the methodology underlying the strategy, as well as a review and revision, where appropriate, of the existing targets. New targets in the areas of health and housing accommodation, as well as specific targets relating to vulnerable groups, are included in the revised strategy. Commitments in the new strategy have been welcomed by all sectors.
The key targets include the reduction of the numbers of those who are consistently poor to below 3% and, if possible, to eliminate consistent poverty. It is hoped that this will take place over the lifetime of the review, up to 2007. Specific attention will be paid to vulnerable groups in this objective. One of the key targets is to achieve a rate of the 2002-equivalent of €150 per week for the lowest social welfare rate by 2007. The appropriate equivalence level of basic child income support is to be set at 33% to 35% of the minimum adult social welfare rate. Long-term unemployment is to be eliminated as soon as circumstances permit, but in any event not later than 2007, while the proportion of pupils with serious literacy difficulties is to be halved by 2006.
Building an Inclusive Society represents a new and strengthened anti-poverty strategy which proposes new and enhanced institutional structures, which will underpin the implementation and monitoring of the revised strategy. Most importantly, as I have outlined, it establishes new and ambitious targets to which the Government has pledged its full commitment.
The NAPS review process will now merge with the EU process that requires each member state to produce national action plans against poverty and social exclusion on a biannual basis. This will ensure that the strategy, while subject to ongoing monitoring and evaluation, will also be comprehensively reviewed every two years. This continuous reappraisal of the strategy will ensure it retains focus and relevance in the years ahead and allows us to continue to realise our ambition of eliminating consistent poverty in Ireland.
I will now outline the provisions contained in the Bill. As Senators will already have considered it in detail, I will focus on a number of key provisions. Child benefit is a universal payment made directly to families. As such it is the most efficient and effective way in which the Government can channel help to children. Before we took office expenditure on child benefit was £397 million annually. The increases announced in budget 2002 and provided for in section 2 of the Bill bring investment in 2002 to €1.44 billion or £1.14 billion approximately – almost three times the 1997 figure.
The monthly rate for the first two children is being increased by €31.80 or £25.04 per month while the monthly rate for the third and subsequent children is being increased by €38.10 or £30.01 per month. These increases bring the monthly rates to €117.60 or £92.60 and €147.30 or £116.01 respectively. From April, a family with three children will receive €382.50 or £301.24 compared to £221 at present, an increase of €101.70 or £80 or 36% per month. These substantial increases fulfil the Government's commitment set out in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness to move towards £100 or €126.97 for the third and subsequent children and will be fully implemented from April. If returned to office, we will continue to give record increases in child benefit.
Since 1997 the monthly rates of child benefit have increased threefold from £30 per month to £92.60 per month for the lower rate and from £39 to £116 for the higher rate of payment. In 1997 the child benefit increase for a family with three children was £7 per month; last year and this the same family will get an increase of £80 per month in each year.
The Bill brings forward the effective date for the 2002 increase to April. However, the first pay day in May is the earliest date from which it is possible for my Department to pay the increased rates. The majority of child benefit payments are made by means of books of payable orders which run from June to May. The new books from June next will contain orders at the increased rate in the normal course. The increase for April and May has, therefore, to be paid separately and May is the earliest date from which it is administratively possible to make this payment to these families.
I am also introducing changes in the arrangements for entitlement to child dependant increases payable with short-term social welfare payments such as disability and unemployment benefit. At present such increases cease to be payable once the child reaches his or her 18th birthday. Section 7 of the Bill provides that from April, where the child is receiving full-time education, these increases will continue to paid until the following 30 June. This is a first step in implementing the commitment in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness towards increasing the age limit to 22 years, in line with the current arrangements for long-term payments.
The Government, over successive budgets, has introduced measures to develop the types of services and supports which provide practical assistance for carers. As a result of changes introduced over the last five budgets, the number of carers receiving carer's allowance and carer's benefit has more than doubled from 9,700 to over 19,500 while expenditure has increased by over 180%.
In the Bill we are continuing to honour our commitment to supporting the valuable work undertaken by carers. In previous budgets I promised to move towards the stage whereby all carers, whose joint family income is at average industrial earnings, will qualify for carer's allowance at the maximum rate. In line with this commitment I have again increased the disregards this year in order that from April, a couple can have a joint income disregard of €382 per week. This measure will increase the payment of 2,300 carers. It will also ensure an estimated additional 3,400 carers will qualify for a payment. This measure will be implemented by way of regulations with effect from April.
One of the many measures I introduced in 1999 was a new annual respite care grant payable to all carers in receipt of carer's allowance and carers caring for recipients of a constant attendance or prescribed relative's allowance. Section 3 of the Bill provides for a further enhancement of this payment by an increase in the amount of the grant from £400 to €635 or £500. In addition, carers caring for more than one care recipient will be entitled to a double respite care grant of €1,270 or £1,000. These increases will become effective in June 2002, when the grant is next due.
Section 15 relaxes the conditions for entitlement to carer's benefit for certain job-sharers and part-time workers. At present, persons claiming carer's benefit must work 38 hours in each period of a fortnight during the 13 weeks preceding their claim. This condition disqualifies some job-sharers and part-time workers from the scheme. Following representations from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, I have decided to reduce the number of hours of employment required to 17 hours per week or 34 per fortnight.
The health strategy recently launched by my colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, also bears out our commitment to improving services for older people, people with disabilities and their carers. The document proposes to reform existing arrangements, including carer's allowance, in order to introduce an integrated care subvention scheme which maximises support for home care. The Department of Health and Children is working with my Department to develop proposals in this area. In addition, the strategy proposes that a co-ordinated action plan to meet the needs of ageing and older people be developed by the Department of Health and Children in conjunction with my Department, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Department of the Environment and Local Government. The strategy makes a number of other proposals in relation to care planning, greater availability of short-term respite care and the development of primary care services such as domiciliary and day care services. I look forward to being a part of this integrated approach to developing better services for carers and the people for whom they care. I would like to think this will continue after the general election regardless of who is in office.
In late 2000 I initiated a study into the whole area of long-term care funding, both in the private and public sector with a view to developing a strategy for future action. This report will be published shortly after Easter. The study will examine the strategic issues involved in financing long-term care. This involves an assessment of alternative financing or funding approaches and their feasibility in the Irish context. The study will encompass the financing of personal long-term care needs, both in the community and institutional care, and the potential of the private sector or a combined public-private sector approach to develop new initiatives in this area. Again, we have adopted a cross-cutting approach in this regard – the study is being undertaken in consultation with the Department of Health and Children and the Department of Finance and any policy proposals arising from the report will be developed in conjunction with these Departments.
Section 4 of the Bill updates the rate of widowed parent grant in primary legislation, which was increased by regulations from £1,000 to €2,500 – £1,968 – with effect from budget day, 5 December last. Sections 5 and 6 give effect to two other budget improvements aimed at assisting people who returned to the workforce, but who were subsequently forced to re-apply for their original social welfare payments. Section 5 provides for the linking of disability benefit claims of five years' duration or more for up to 13 weeks in relation to periods of incapacity for work. This measure will ensure that people who, following a prolonged illness, return to employment but find after a short time that they are unable to continue can re-apply for disability benefit without the need to satisfy the conditions for re-qualification.
Section 6 disregards periods spent on pre-retirement allowance for the purpose of linking two claims to unemployment assistance and for linking two claims to pre-retirement allowance which occur within 52 weeks. Cases have arisen where people on pre-retirement allowance have resumed employment but who subsequently became unemployed. Under existing arrange ments they must claim unemployment assistance and serve three waiting days before receiving payment. To avoid this disincentive, it is now intended to allow such people to resume claiming pre-retirement allowance where the period spent in employment is less than 52 weeks.
Section 9 changes the qualifying conditions for entitlement to maternity and adoptive benefits by self-employed people. The main effect of the changes is to allow self-employed women greater flexibility in satisfying the PRSI contribution conditions for the benefits concerned and to bring them more into line with those applicable to employees.
Section 11 deals with the PRSI arrangements for the proposed new personal retirement savings accounts or PRSAs being introduced under the Pensions Bill currently before the other House and for other personal pension plans. The PRSA will be a low cost, easy access, long-term personal investment account designed to allow people save for their retirement in a flexible manner.
It is proposed that payments towards such pensions will be treated in a similar manner to contributions made to existing occupational pensions for PRSI purposes, that is, they will be exempt from PRSI. Where payments to such pensions are made through the payroll system, the necessary exemptions will be provided for under regulations governing the PAYE system. Section 11 deals with cases where the premium payments are made outside the payroll system. It provides for a refund of the PRSI contributions deducted from such payments over the course of a tax year.
Section 12 provides for the introduction of a public service identity to enhance the effectiveness of the personal public service number as a public service identifier. In our action programme for Government, we promised to modernise public services to make them more relevant to the citizen. We promised to improve access to public services by providing them electronically and this is a key element of our e-government strategy. Our aim is to put the customer first rather than the supplier of the service and to integrate services to make access as easy as possible for the people who use them. People want to be able to contact public services in the manner most appropriate to their needs whether in person, by telephone or letter, or, increasingly, on-line. They want to be able to transact their business seamlessly and not have to go from one agency to another repeating the same information.
To achieve this, the Government has approved a new model known as the public service broker for the delivery of public services electronically. The broker is being developed by the REACH agency, which operates under the aegis of my Department, and it will co-ordinate access to the full range of public services in a variety of ways, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The building blocks for this new service were put in place with the legislation I introduced in 1998 providing for the personal public service number as a public service identifier and as a framework for the sharing of information between agencies for specified services. In section 12 of the Bill I am introducing a further building block for this process with the introduction of a public service identity which will act as a unique and secure identifier for public service customers.
From the customer's point of view, the public service identity will be a speedy, efficient method of establishing who they are for the purposes of access to and dealing with public service agencies. It will also mean that their identity can be better protected against inadvertent disclosure or against theft or misuse by other persons.
Section 12 defines the elements of the identity, which will include, inter alia, the person's name, address, date of birth, sex, nationality and his or her PPS number. Where this data is collected from customers in their dealings with public service agencies, it will be used to maintain their identity in the event of a change, for example, a change of address. In addition, it is proposed that personal data collected at birth registration will also be used for this purpose. My Department will be responsible for managing the access by public service agencies to a person's public service identity as part of its management of the existing PPS database. This measure will lead to improved administrative efficiency and effectiveness across all public service agencies. It will help reduce bureaucracy and begin the process of eliminating red tape.
Section 14 strengthens the powers of the Revenue Commissioners in relation to the collection of PRSI contributions. It allows the Revenue Commissioners to offset repayment of taxes against outstanding liabilities for PRSI. Second, it extends the provisions of the Taxes Acts regarding publication of the names of tax defaulters where the settlement is greater than €12,700 to PRSI contributions.
Section 16 and Part 2 of the Schedule to the Bill provide for an amendment to the Charities Acts removing the financial limit attached to the use of cy-près. In the White Paper on Supporting Voluntary Activity published in September 2000, the Government announced that responsibility for charity regulatory matters and the Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests would transfer from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to my Department. This transfer of responsibilities was effected last July. The White Paper also recognised the need for a more modern legal framework for the charity sector and stated the Government's commitment to ensuring the introduction of comprehensive legislation on regulation of charities and charitable fund-raising. The work of reviewing the legislation which is currently underway in my Department will be accompanied by broad public consultation on the appropriate regulatory frame work and the nature and extent of the legislative reform required.
Pending completion of this process of reform, I take the opportunity in this Bill to make two important changes to the Charities Acts. The Charities Acts allows the commissioners to frame so-called "cy-près” schemes which allow the original objects of a charity to be altered, usually because these objects can no longer be carried out. This may arise, for example, in the case of funds left to an orphanage which no longer exists. In such circumstances the commissioners could use the “cy-près” provisions to divert these funds to the nearest contemporary use, such as the children's ward of a local hospital. This is a very valuable service for charities which is provided free of charge by the commissioners; however, there is currently a monetary limit of £250,000 on the commissioners' discretion. In cases above this limit, charities are obliged to take the matter to the High Court and bear the considerable costs that can be associated with this course of action.
Part 2 of the Schedule to the Bill increases the powers of the commissioners by abolishing the current monetary limit on their determination of such applications. It also provides that the commissioners will have power to authorise a lease rather than a disposition of land held on charitable trust where a power of sale was not provided in the original gift. These two amendments were sought by the Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests in my discussions with them.
Parts 4 to 9, inclusive, of the Schedule to the Bill amend the Births, Deaths and Marriages Acts to facilitate the initial implementation of a new computerised system of registering life events. Civil registration touches on each and every one of us at important stages in our lives, beginning with the registration of our births and ending when our deaths are registered. In between those events, civil registration affects us during our lives both directly, as in the case of getting married, or indirectly, when certificates are required for many of the services that are available in our society, such as enrolling a child in school, getting a passport, taking up employment or claiming a social welfare payment. Due to the importance of civil registration and recognising the changing needs of customers, the Government gave approval for expenditure of some £7.3 million on a programme to modernise the Civil Registration Service.
While there has been little change to the basic registration procedures since 1864, there have been many changes in our society, major developments in technology and increased expectations by citizens of how public services should be delivered. My Department, in conjunction with the Department of Health and Children, has been engaged in the review of the entire registration system including registration law. The review also examined the structure of registration on a national basis in order to identify the changes needed to capitalise on the use of modern computer technology to capture registration information in an electronic format at the point of registration. The objective is to implement a modern and customer focused service geared to the needs of the 21st century. The modernisation of the registration service will benefit all citizens by providing increased flexibility, in accessing and delivering the service.
I intend to publish a comprehensive Civil Registration Bill later this year which will provide a framework for new administrative structures for the General Registrar Office, the introduction of new registers of divorce and civil nullity and changes in the procedures for registering the events – births, stillbirths, adoptions, marriages and deaths. Approximately 104,000 events are registered each year – 52,000 births, 500 stillbirths, 16,000 marriages, 31,000 deaths, 500 adoptions, 2,000 re-registrations and 2,000 amendments. In addition, 400,000 certificates are produced and 1.2 million searches or inquiries are carried out each year.
The Registration of Births and Deaths Acts, 1863 to 1996, and the Marriages Acts, 1844 and 1863, provide for the manner in which births, deaths and marriages may be registered and also for the maintenance of a permanent record of vital events by An tArd Chlaraitheoir. These Acts also set out the manner in which the public may access the records and obtain certified copies of individual records. Parts 4 to 9, inclusive, of the Schedule to the Bill provide for the amendment of the relevant Acts to facilitate the introduction of the electronic registration of births and deaths later this year which will represent the first phase of the modernisation programme.
The Bill also includes provisions to allow for the capture and storing in electronic format of all registration records created since 1845 – about 20 million records in all. The electronic capture of historical data is of fundamental importance to the success of the modernisation programme. Currently, a person can only get a certificate in the district in which the event was registered or from the GRO. When the records are computerised it will be possible to get a certificate at any registrar's office around the country for any event registered in the State. For example, if one was born in Donegal and currently living in Cork, one would have to write or call to the registrar in Donegal or the GRO in Dublin for a birth certificate. When the records are computerised, one will be able to call to the local registrar in Cork.
I would like to think one will be able to buy one's certificate on-line or on the high street. I envisage the GRO project – the computerisation of the births, marriages, deaths, etc. – will feed into what is called the REACH project which I mentioned earlier. When somebody is born and an application in relation to registration is made to social welfare, all the information will be on computer. Therefore, when somebody applies for a social welfare payment, it will not be necessary for him or her to produce his or her birth and marriage certificates and so on because it will be available on-line in our Department.
Part 6 of the Schedule provides for a change in the arrangements for re-registration of a birth. At present, there are two types of re-registration. Under the Legitimacy Act, 1931, where the parents of the child subsequently marry after the birth of the child, they are required to have the birth re-registered. The second type of re-registration was introduced by the Status of Children Act, 1987, to allow the father's details to be added to the register where the parents are not married to each other and the father's details are not shown in the original register entry.
The current legislation provides that where a birth is re-registered under these Acts, the surname of the child to be recorded is that which appears on the original entry – usually the mother's surname. In such cases where a couple marry after the registration of the birth of their child there is no means at present to confer the father's surname on the child. This restriction has obviously caused difficulty and embarrassment for both parents and children where following marriage, the parents have the husband's – the father's – surname and the child on his or her birth certificate is known by the mother's name. The effect of the amendment included in Part 6 of the Schedule is that in such cases a child's surname can be re-registered at the joint request of both parents.
I am also taking the opportunity in the Bill to amend the law dealing with the commencement of maintenance orders which is contained in section 4 of the Family Law (Maintenance of Spouses and Children) Act, 1976. This Act was one of the first of the modern pieces of family law legislation repealing the Married Women (Maintenance in case of Desertion) Act, 1886. It allows for stand alone applications for maintenance. Most applications under the Act are brought in the District Court. Section 4 provides that a periodical payment order under the Act shall commence on the date specified in the order not being a date earlier than that on which the order is made. However, problems have been identified with the operation of this provision which allows the maintenance payer to effectively delay the date from which payments must be made.
The first of these is that payment under the order cannot be commenced earlier than the date of the order to the original court – usually the District Court. This gives the maintenance payer the incentive to delay the original court hearing as much as possible. Second, in the case of an appeal, usually from the District Court to the Circuit Court, while the appeal does not automatically act as a stay on the order, nonetheless as a matter of practice a stay is usually granted. Thus the maintenance award usually has effect only from the date of the grant of maintenance, that is, in the Circuit Court on appeal. This provides an incentive for the maintenance payer to appeal.
This contrasts with the provisions of the Family Law Act, 1995, and the Family Law (Divorce) Act, 1996, under which the court can specify that the order may take effect earlier than the date of the order although not earlier than the date of application for the order. This, in effect, allows the court to back date the maintenance order to the date of the commencement of the proceedings or at any time during the intervening period. This provides some encouragement to the parties to process the litigation in a speedy fashion. The proposed amendment to section 4 is designed to introduce similar arrangements for applications for maintenance under the 1976 Act by providing that a court could order that the periodical payments commence at any time from the date of the original application.
I hope Senators have benefited from this outline of the key provisions of the Bill. I look forward to the debate on it and commend it to Seanad Éireann.
