Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for acknowledging what is a very significant increase in the back-to-school allowance and the free school bus service for the year, which is hugely welcomed across the country.

I agree with the second point made by the Deputy. As I stated, there is only a certain cohort who will be able to avail of it, particularly in the context of the back-to-school allowance. It had to be done quickly. It could not wait until the budget because children go back to school in August. It had to be done straight away. As sated earlier, we will have to take further measures that go beyond social welfare recipients, such as the working family payment and the qualified child allowance. Consideration could be given to a variety of targeted measures. There are families across the country who are on a good wage but in difficult circumstances, so we have to ensure the protection measures we put in place are as broad as possible.

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