James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I assure the Deputy that children and child poverty are a priority for the Government. This was the first Government to create a full Cabinet level post for a Minister for Children. Our commitment to improving outcomes for children is clear and I make it clear that our children are our future. I am privileged to have been the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs for several months and I have found nothing but enthusiasm and energy from our younger people. I feel secure about the country's future when I see the young people who will lead us into the future.

My Department has a critical role in regard to child poverty, but the lead Department is the Department of Social Protection. We look to other jurisdictions to see what they do well and what they do not do so well. The idea behind the setting up of the interdepartmental group is to look at affordability and access and, as it says in its title, to look at future investment in childhood and how we invest in our children. It seeks to look at the entire investment we make. While my Department spends €260 million in this area, the Department of Social Protection spends a lot more. Other areas also spend significant sums. We are seeking coherence and understanding of how all of this money is spent so as to be able to get best value for money before we invest further money.

I believe we will need to invest further money and believe the interdepartmental group will come forward with a coherent policy that will cover all of the age groups. It will look at different ways of supporting all age groups to help children and parents and achieve better outcomes for children.

See this speech in context