Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Renua Ireland)
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100. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection her assessment of child inequality and poverty; the action her Department is taking to address this problem; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35324/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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The CSO Survey on Income and living Conditions for 2013 shows that 11.7 per cent of children were in consistent poverty, a slight but not statistically significant increase on the 2012 rate. The Survey also found that the at-risk-of-poverty for children decreased from 18.8 per cent in 2012 to 17.9 per cent in 2013.

Social transfers, such as welfare payments and child benefit, play a key role in reducing income poverty among children. In 2013, social transfers lifted a quarter of all children out of at-risk-of-poverty. This equates to a poverty reduction effect of 60.7 per cent. Ireland is amongst the best performing member states in the EU in this regard.

The Government adopted a child poverty target in Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures: The national policy framework for children and young people 2014-2020.This aims to lift 70,000 children out of consistent poverty by 2020, equivalent to a reduction of two-thirds on the 2011 rate.

In support of the target, the Government is implementing a whole-of-government approach to tackling child poverty, building on the life-cycle approach in the National Action Plan for Social Inclusion, 2007-2016and informed by the European Commission Recommendation on ‘Investing in children: Breaking the cycle of disadvantage’. A range of government departments and other stakeholders are involved in implementing this approach.

In Budget 2016, the Government committed over €200 million to support families with children through higher income supports and increased provision of early childhood care and education and other forms of childcare. The social impact assessment of Budget 2016 shows that households with children are the biggest beneficiaries, in particular working lone parents.

In addition, a key way to tackle child poverty is to create more jobs and to reduce unemployment. Through Pathways to Workand the Action Plan on Jobs, and with the support of schemes such as the family income supplement, the back to work family dividend, and the jobseeker’s transition payment, the Government is helping families to take-up work and to improve the rewards from work.