Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 175: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the actions he is taking to ensure that the proposal by the European Commission that the EU should set a target of reducing poverty by 25% by 2020 is accepted. [21608/10]

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that the European Council at its meeting in March 2010 agreed on the inclusion of five headline targets in Europe 2020: A strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The targets constitute shared objectives guiding the action of the Member States and the Union on the key areas where action is needed: knowledge and innovation, a more sustainable economy, high employment and social inclusion.

The target to promote social inclusion is framed in terms of poverty reduction. Its purpose is to measure progress in reducing poverty and in ensuring that the benefits of growth and jobs are shared. The Commission proposed a target of reducing poverty in Europe by 25 per cent, or 20 million people, using the at-risk-of-poverty indicator. The European Council decided that further work is needed on appropriate indicators and will revert to the issue at its June 2010 meeting. The Irish Government supports the decision to include a poverty target in the European strategy for 2020. Ireland favours the formulation of a poverty target based on indicators which appropriately reflect the multi-dimensional nature of poverty and exclusion.

The EU Social Protection Committee (SPC) is advising on the appropriate indicators for an EU poverty target. Officials of my own Department and of other relevant Departments are actively participating in these deliberations. The advice of the SPC will be presented for consideration at the ESPHCA Council of Ministers meeting on 7/8 June. It is anticipated that the poverty target will be decided at the European Council meeting later in June.

It is envisaged that the overall EU poverty reduction target will be translated into national targets on the basis of appropriate indicators given national circumstances and priorities. Since 1997, the Government has adopted poverty targets as part of its national policy against poverty and for social inclusion. The Irish target is based on a composite poverty indicator known as 'consistent poverty'. The indicator identifies the percentage of the population which is both below 60 per cent of median income (known as 'at-risk-of-poverty') and experiencing material deprivation (the enforced lack of two or more basic necessities).

The Government target in the National Action Plan for Social Inclusion 2007-2016 is to further reduce consistent poverty to between 2-4 per cent by 2012 and to eliminate it by 2016. The latest results (2008) from the EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) (released November 2009) indicate that poverty trends are on track to achieve both the 2012 and 2016 targets. The rate of consistent poverty in the population in 2008 was 4.2 per cent, down from 5.1 per cent in 2007 and 6.5 per cent in 2006.