Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 April 2012
123 Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Social Protection if the same conditions apply regarding the requirement for applicants for social welfare benefits to satisfy a habitual residence requirement for both citizens of Ireland and citizens of the United Kingdom, in cases where citizens of one country apply for said benefits in the other country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21085/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe requirement to be habitually resident in Ireland was introduced as a qualifying condition for certain social assistance schemes and child benefit with effect from 1 May 2004. The effect of the condition is that a person whose habitual residence is elsewhere would not normally be entitled to social welfare assistance or child benefit payments on arrival in Ireland. Each case received for a determination on the Habitual Residence Condition is dealt with in its own right and a decision is based on application of the legislation and guidelines to the particular individual circumstances of each case.
Decisions concerning habitual residence are subject to five factors which have been laid down by the European Court of Justice, and which are now incorporated into our domestic social welfare legislation. The five factors are:
(a) the length and continuity of residence in the State or in any other particular country;
(b) the length and purpose of any absence from the State;
(c) the nature and pattern of the person's employment;
(d) the person's main centre of interest, and
(e) the future intentions of the person concerned as they appear from all the circumstances.
There is no discrimination on grounds of nationality in social welfare legislation and to introduce such a provision would be contrary to the equality principles that Ireland has adopted in its equality legislation, the Treaties of the European Community and the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and other international conventions. Therefore the same conditions exist for UK nationals as nationals from any other country.
Any applicant who disagrees with the decision on a case has the right to request a review of that decision and/or appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.
124 Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Social Protection her plans regarding cuts in child welfare (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21098/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn the past, income support for people of working age, including lone parents, has been passive in nature, with little systematic engagement by the State with the customer. This is now changing. Long-term welfare dependency and passive income support to people of working age are not in the best interests of the recipient, of their children or of society. The long-term income support that the one-parent family payment (OFP) scheme provided to lone parents up to 2011, until their children were aged 18, or 22 if in full-time education, without any requirement for them to engage in employment, education or training, has proved to be ineffective in addressing the poverty and social exclusion experienced by some of these families.
The best route out of poverty and social exclusion is through paid employment. Work, and especially full-time work, may not be an option for parents of young children. However, supporting parents to participate in the labour market, once their children have reached an appropriate age, will improve both their own economic situation and the social well-being of themselves and of their families.
The Social Welfare and Pensions Bill, 2012, introduces changes to the structure of the OFP payment and to the age of the youngest child at which the payment ceases. These changes are being brought in over time.
The reduction in the maximum age limit of the youngest child for receipt of the OFP is being applied to new and existing customers on a phased basis and will not affect existing customers until 2013. For new recipients, from 3 May, 2012, the OFP payment will be made until the youngest child reaches the age of 12. This will reduce further to age 10 in 2013 and to age 7 in 2014. These additional reductions will be considered in the context of the further development of relevant activation and support services. For existing recipients, there will be a tapered phasing-out period to enable them to access education and training and to prepare them for their return to the labour market.
I have acknowledged that reforming the OFP will require a whole of Government response. I will be engaging with both the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs and the Minister for Education and Skills to have a co-ordinated, cross-Departmental approach to ensuring that the required level of services are in place to support lone parents as their youngest child reaches the relevant age thresholds.
At the same time, the development of the National Employment and Entitlement Service (NEES) and the profiling of jobseekers, which is already underway in my Department, will lead to a better identification and understanding of the supports that individual customers need and the extent to which these are available and affordable.
As part of this cross-Departmental approach, discussions have already been taking place between officials from my Department and from the Department of Children and Youth Affairs with regard to the development of a policy framework around after-school care, and, in the short-term, the assessment of the extent of the current provision of such care, the costs of such care to parents, and the demand for such services from lone parents.
