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Child Benefit Reform

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 19 June 2018

Tuesday, 19 June 2018

Questions (34)

Willie O'Dea

Question:

34. Deputy Willie O'Dea asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if she will address her recent comments on child benefit; her plans generally for this universal payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26409/18]

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Oral answers (6 contributions)

My question concerns recent comments made by the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Deputy Regina Doherty, that she was prepared to look at the question of child benefit payable to people on salaries of more than €100,000 per annum. When the Minister says she will look at something, I presume she means that she will either means test it or tax it. I have tabled this question to give the Minister an opportunity to state unequivocally the Government's position in this regard here and on the record of the House.

Given the week I have had, I appreciate the Deputy putting this question.

Child benefit is a monthly payment made to families with children in respect of all qualified children up to the age of 16 years. It is designed as a universal payment in recognition of the costs involved in raising children and plays an important role in tackling poverty. As a universal payment, it does not rely on a means test or social insurance contributions. 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 paid to almost 629,000 families in respect of nearly 1.2 million children, with an estimated expenditure of more than €2 billion in 2018.

In recent days I have made my position on the child benefit payment very clear. I thank the Deputy for giving me the opportunity to explain it on the record of the House. I will not, and I have never intended to, introduce a means test for child benefit. Means-testing child benefit is not being considered by Government and is not provided for in the programme for Government. Government policy is to provide additional supports for parents and their children through increased services rather than through increased cash transfers. This includes such services as free early years education through the early childhood care and education, ECCE, scheme, and enhanced provision of affordable childcare.

As the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, I genuinely and wholeheartedly support the universality of the child benefit payment, the system we have, and the principle that all families with children should receive this income support.

I thank the Minister for making the position crystal clear so now we all know exactly where we stand. Would she agree with me that the universality of child benefit stems from the fact that we are talking about horizontal equity?

In other words, resources are taken from people without children and given to those with them because the latter obviously have more expenses. Any means-testing or taxing of the benefit would be contrary to the principle of horizontal equity.

The Minister stated that her focus was on increasing services such as childcare rather than increasing cash benefits. Does that mean that we are entering a situation in which the amount payable in child benefit will effectively be frozen for the foreseeable future as resources are directed more and more towards child services?

The universality of the payment is a recognition of the fact that families with children have higher costs than those without. That has always been the principle and, given that it is enshrined in my personal belief, will remain so for as long as I am Minister.

My comments do not mean that anything will be frozen. Rather, we are using whatever money we have to try to improve and expand the range of public services. We all recognise that these are badly needed, in particular financially supported childcare, of which there is a major deficit. Stemming from the conversation that gave rise to the reporting, addressing that deficit is one of our country-specific objectives in the current EU semester, but there are also other measures, for example, medical care for children. We have free GP access for children under six years of age. The programme for Government would like to extend that. We added a second year to the early childhood care and education, ECCE, year that was introduced by the Deputy's Government. We would like to maintain and extend that scheme, increase capitations and improve quality. This is all about increasing and improving the range of services that the public service can offer people.

Can I take it that the Mangan report is effectively a dead letter now? Does the Minister have plans to make further changes? I am not referring to increases, but to structural reforms in the child benefit system. For example, one of the suggestions in the Mangan report was for larger amounts to be paid to lower income families. However, I recognise that this would be a form of means testing.

When I was asked about the Mangan report at the Institute of International and European Affairs, IIEA, conference, I said that I would be open to reading it and considering its contents. I have never read it but would not be arrogant enough not to see the value in examining something. The Government and I have no plans to means test. It is probably with good reason that the Mangan report was not acted upon when it was given to the then Minister for Social Protection in 2013. I am reading it, but only out of curiosity, not out of intent or will to make specific changes.

To help prevent child poverty, particularly through the payment's universality, my Department will ensure that child benefit remains as is and that we increase the spread of the working family payment. Last year, I started increasing children-specific qualified benefits. It was the first such increase in eight years. With everyone's co-operation, I hope to be able to do so again this year. Next week, we will announce the back to school and clothing allowances for 2018. My Department handles a myriad of supports for families with children. I would like to see us collectively extending those so as to ensure that such families are supported financially where they are not in a position to look after themselves.

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