Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am very committed to that programme, as Deputy Ó Cuív will know. It has been expanded, and 270,000 or maybe more children avail of the school meals programme now. I want to ramp up the hot school meals programme. I am also conscious that the cost of food has gone up. The suppliers get €2.90 per hot meal. That is the rate at the minute. There is an evaluation, however, because I had a number of people on to me saying they could not deliver dinners at that price. I want to make sure children get decent dinners. There is no doubt about that. The children deserve it. I have commissioned an evaluation of the school meals programme whereby all elements of the programme will be considered. That will include the rates payable under the scheme and whether there is anything better we can do in respect of the future direction of the scheme. As far as I am concerned, we should be increasing it all the time. My aim has always been that every child in the country, regardless of his or her background, including socioeconomic background or anything else, should get that dinner in the middle of the day. We should do that and just get on with it. I cannot just do it all at once but I will look at the evaluation and will have that by the end of the year. I do not want people saying they want to stop providing the school meals, but I just have to finish that evaluation. We can look at the rates at that stage as part of that.

Deputy Ó Cuív mentioned the particular case of a person who has MS. If he gives us the details of that case, we will be happy to look at it.