asked the Minister for Social Welfare the reason for the delay in having children's allowances paid in respect of the 12 children of the Reilly family who fled from Northern Ireland about 10 weeks ago and have got no allowances since they crossed the Border.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Children's Allowances.
19.
Arrangements were made in August last with the authorities concerned whereby orders in family allowance books held by refugees from the Six Counties could be cashed at all post offices in the State. These arrangements still stand and there is no reason, therefore, why any refugee family should not have received payment of family allowances in full since crossing the Border.
It has been ascertained, however, that the person named in the Deputy's question is an itinerant who had been resident in the Six Counties for some seven years and who apparently decided to return to live permanently south of the Border in October last. He returned his Six County family allowance book to the authorities concerned after cashing an order in Clones on 7th October and his entitlement to family allowance was terminated on 14th October, 1969. He claimed children's allowance in the Republic in respect of nine children on 24th October, 1969, but failed to submit the necessary certificates or any other evidence of birth. He was asked to forward the certificates but did so at irregular intervals and only seven had been received by 5th December. My Department was then obliged to seek confirmation of birth of the remaining two children from the Six County authorities. This was obtained and an allowance book issued to the claimant on 12th December.