Ms Ann Irwin:

Returning to Deputy Sean Fleming's point on Dáil debate on budget issues, we would welcome that. It is high time we started translating the rhetoric of protecting the vulnerable into reality, because we certainly have not done that in the past number of budgets.

I will make a quick comment on what Senator Hayden stated about two sides of the coin - whether the Government persists with cuts or increases tax. The Senator is correct. The Government is faced with a clear choice in this budget. It should look at the social cost of continuing down the road on which the country is currently. For us in the women's council, it is as though the parent is paying back the debt but the children are going hungry.

We can see that in the year-on-year increase in the poverty statistics, particularly in regard to deprivation. Over half of lone-parent households, or 56%, face deprivation day in, day out. The minimum income system represents a really good idea. We would welcome that. The Department of Social Protection is doing its utmost to protect the very basic rates but secondary benefits are coming more and more into question. These are the types of benefits that keep families going. In the National Women's Council of Ireland, we note many women on the ground turning to illegal moneylenders. This occurs in many areas, from inner-city Dublin to Sligo, for example. It occurs on occasions such as Christmas and communions. Allowances such as the back-to-school allowance have been cut. With regard to the idea on the two sides of the coin and the making of a choice, we really encourage the Government to make the right choices.