Ms June Tinsley:

To follow on from Deputy Ryan's comments summarising the position, End Child Poverty is in favour of reform, wants to maintain FIS and wants to increase the thresholds. The other key component is investment in services. While we recognise that there is not much money available, €450 million has already been saved on child income supports but children are not necessarily seeing the day-to-day benefit of that. It is a question of political leadership and investment in our children and their futures. That means provision of quality early years services, including a second free pre-school year while ensuring that high quality is maintained. It also means the provision of quality after-school care. While 6,000 after-school places were provided for in budget 2013, there are quality and quantity issues given that there are many thousands of children who would benefit from such a service, which would facilitate their parents to take up employment and, where such parents are in low-paid employment, maintain or become eligible for FIS payments. End Child Poverty believes child poverty can only be eradicated through a combination of quality income supports and quality services and is a question of investing in those.