Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister is right. Jobs are the best way to lift children out of poverty. This is why it is unbelievable that in four years, the Government has failed to tackle one of the biggest barriers to getting people back into the workforce, particularly people on the lowest incomes - namely, the cost of child care. The Government is failing in that regard. It is the private sector that has created jobs, not this Government. It is good that the Minister does acknowledge that the Government received an "F" grade in respect of child poverty, because the Government's decisions have resulted in a doubling of the number of children living in consistent poverty since 2009 and a 2% increase in 2014, a year of economic growth. The Minister should take his head out of the clouds. While there is some economic recovery out there, there are tens of thousands of families in poverty traps. Does the Minister not read the daily newspapers? Only before Christmas, we heard about a homeless family who had to go to Dublin Airport to ensure their children were kept warm. Does the Minister think this is right in a modern democracy? Does he think it is right that, as a society, we stand over a situation in which children must go out to the airport to keep warm? What are the Minister's plans to ensure that children in these vulnerable situations are supported?

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