Sir, - I would like to reply to Roisin Shortall's letter (August 6th) on family policy on behalf of the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs, Dermot Ahern, TD.
The Government, in its action programme, is committed to putting the family at the centre of all its policies. Supporting family policy has been a key priority for Mr Ahern in his first year in office.
One of the highlights of that period was the publication of the report of the Commission on the Family. Acting on a pre-Budget submission from the Commission, Mr Ahern has:
tripled support to the Family Mediation Service;
increased funding for marriage counselling;
provided for 25 new family and community centres;
established a family affairs unit in his Department with the task of co-ordinating family policy.
A range of issues concerning the treatment of different family types under the tax and social welfare systems is currently being examined by an inter-Departmental committee chaired by this Department. This committee will report later this year.
Mr Ahern believes that we must ensure that public policies must respond to the changing needs of families in order to ensure that the family remains the fundamental unit of our society. - Yours, etc., Muriel Cleary, Press Officer,
Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs, Dublin 2.