Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The reduction of children's poverty is a key political priority for the Government. The Taoiseach has described tackling child poverty as a moral imperative and I too believe that it is a vital issue that we must address robustly. In recognition of the higher risks and life-long consequences of child poverty, the Government set a child-specific poverty target in Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures to reduce consistent child poverty by at least two thirds by 2020. This figure currently represents 102,000 children who need to be lifted up from this threshold.

The Department of Social Protection has the lead role in coordinating government strategies on child poverty and is adopting a cross-departmental approach. It also has lead responsibility for the national action plan for social inclusion and has identified child poverty as a key cross-sectoral priority to be addressed. Officials in my Department are working closely with the Department of Social Protection in informing the development of this cross-sectoral priority. Officials in the Department of Social Protection have convened a subgroup with members of the advisory council for Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures to progress solutions to child poverty.

In recognition of the fact that child poverty is a multifaceted problem, the group includes officials from other Departments, including the Departments of Health and Education and Skills. Led by the Department of Social Protection, it has produced a paper which outlines a whole-of-Government approach to tackling child poverty. This is based around the three pillars outlined in the European Union's recommendation on investing in children, namely, access to adequate resources, access to affordable quality services and children's right to participate. The paper will come before the consortium of interdepartmental officials working on the issue in the near future.

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