Birth cert plan may not affect maintenance retrieval
Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton outlined plans last week to amend the 2004 Civil Registration Act, which she said would stop sham marriages.
The amendment would make it compulsory for a father’s name to be put on the birth certificate of his child.
One consequence of this would be to tighten up an aspect of maintenance recovery, as figures from last year showed that 525 “liable relatives” were unidentified in cases that came before the department’s Maintenance Recovery Unit.
However, figures released by the department show that, in the first three months of this year, out of 1,641 referrals to the MRU, the name of the other parent was absent in just 52 cases.
A department spokesperson also said not every liable relative is in a position to make a contribution to their child’s welfare.
“If the liable relative is named on the birth certificate in all of these cases, this will allow for an examination to determine whether he or she is in a financial position to contribute towards the cost of One-Parent Family payment,” the spokesperson said.
“Certain categories of liable relatives are not pursued due to personal circumstances or because they have low incomes.”
One Family, which supports single parents, said the proposal was a concern.
