wow, as a single dad I find this thread pretty incredible. The torches and pitch-forks are out, never mind the massive sweeping generalisations about single parents and also their children.
Turn off Fox news for a sec and take a look at the welfare dept's own figures on the average time an individual single parent actually receives the benefits, and then divide it into the various 'types' of single parent. Pretty sure it was Joan Burton released them a few years ago responding to the perceived undetected fraud in this area.
They consider that couples in receipt of single parent welfare as:
- it was fraud, but they split up (and its then legitimate to receive it)
- they marry (and its legitimately removed)
- its fraud and detected (and its legitimately removed)
- they are actually a single parent (and they legitimately receive it - Plus people like me, they work full time and are taxed as income on the benefits)
- a widow remarries (legitimately removed)
- it's fraud and goes undetected
During Burtons reign, welfare also closed some loopholes regarding how many nights a child could spend in the other parents house in other for both of them to claim. Now only one can claim.
Seems to me that most of your issues would be resolved if they sorted out the (already pretty strict, but difficult to prove) rules on co-habitation. They're listed on the revenue website btw.
single parents account for 4.4% of the adult population according to the CSO, before you bear in mind that only one of the parents can claim the benefit and that many are then taxed on it, widowed etc and then theres the detected fraud and then there's the actual undetected fraud.
If you think your "neighbours mates single friend" is sneaking around defrauding the state, then do us all a favour, put the keyboard and the hand-lotion down and call Leo's fraud hotline FFS.
(Note my sweeping generalisation there
).
Can't believe you're ring-leading this Brendan.
Your original question asks "how much". The answer therefore is basic addition of a few benefits (see below). God knows we love our basic math.
So,
With two young children I get exactly €253 per week (€183+€30+€30 I think), plus a one parent family credit (again I think it's about €1600-1900). I then pay income tax on it at the higher rate.
It's about €6k pa after tax across the 3 of us.
Considering I can't leave the house to go to work, shops etc without a childminder, it's a fraction of my minder bills pa.
Thankfully we're lucky and don't rely on it, as I've a good job and chose to stay working.
Have some perspective folks