Vol. 508 No. 1
631 Ms Clune asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if the findings of his departmental working group examining cases relating to joint custody of children and the social welfare system have been finalised; the recommendations, if any, which will be implemented; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17237/99]
The question of accommodating joint custody arrangements within the social welfare system is a difficult and complex issue and any solution proposed must strike a reasonable balance between acknowledging the caring role of the parents involved, maintaining the integrity of existing social welfare schemes and avoiding excessive additional expenditure or administrative overheads. The Department is conscious of the need to develop a policy in this area as joint custody arrangements will become increasingly common with the growing emphasis on mediated settlements between separating couples.
A departmental working group was established to examine all of the issues relating to joint custody and the social welfare system together with the possible options of accommodating such arrangements within the system. The findings of this group will now be examined as part of a review of the one-parent family payment which is being undertaken under the Department's expenditure review programme. This review has recently started and it is hoped to have it completed early next year.
