Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

The National Anti-Poverty Strategy target set in 2002 was to reduce the numbers of those who are consistently poor, including children, to 2% by 2007 and, if possible, to eliminate consistent poverty as then defined. Survey information produced by the ESRI showed that the level of consistent poverty had steadily fallen from 8.3% in 1994 to 4.1% in 2001. The Government considered that achieving the 2% target over the following five-year period was realistic and attainable and that it might even be possible to eliminate consistent poverty.

The consistent poverty measure was developed by the Economic and Social Research Institute in 1987. It identified people as being in consistent poverty if their income was below 60% of median income and they were also deprived of one or more goods or services considered essential for a basic standard of living. The data for measuring consistent poverty up to 2001 were drawn from the Living in Ireland Survey. From 2003, however, this survey was replaced by the EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions, EU-SILC, administered by the Central Statistics Office. The discontinuity between the two survey methods means it is not possible to compare trends in consistent poverty using these two different measures. Consequently, although EU-SILC data has shown higher rates of consistent poverty since 2003, continuing low levels of unemployment and the substantial amount of resources devoted to social welfare and other social services support the view that the downward trend in consistent poverty would have continued and that the target would have been reached by 2007 had the Living in Ireland Survey method continued in use.

Moreover, data from the first three years of EU-SILC indicate that the overall consistent poverty rate has fallen from 8.8% in 2003 to 7% in 2005 while, as I mentioned, consistent poverty among children fell from 12.2% to 10.2% over the same period. The targets set for reducing consistent poverty are now based on the latest EU-SILC figures and particularly on the progress achieved in the period 2003-05.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House.

In addition, an updated set of indicators devised by the ESRI, which are in keeping with living standards today rather than those of 1987, are being used to measure consistent poverty. On the basis of this method of measurement and the policies and resources being put in place under the National Action Plan for Social Inclusion 2007-2016, NAPinclusion, the overall goal now is to reduce the number of persons, including children, experiencing consistent poverty to between 2% and 4% by 2012, with the aim of eliminating consistent poverty by 2016.

The continued reduction and eventual elimination of child poverty remains a top priority for the Government and the programme for Government prioritises the objectives of NAPinclusion in this regard. In working to deliver the Government programme over the coming months, my plan is to build on the significant progress that has been made in reducing poverty in the past ten years and to deliver real improvements in living standards and wellbeing for the most vulnerable in our society, especially our children.

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