Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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646. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if an update will be provided on the way Ireland is spending the EU child guarantee scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50588/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The text of the Recommendation for a European Child Guarantee was adopted by the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO) on 14 June 2021. Ireland played an active role in the drafting of the text and related discussions. The European Child Guarantee aims to break the cycle of poverty and social exclusion across generations.

The Guarantee seeks to prevent and combat social exclusion by guaranteeing access for children who are in need of a range of key services. It calls on Member States to guarantee for children in need, free access to early childhood education and care; education (including school-based activities); and healthcare; and to ensure effective access healthy nutrition, a healthy meal each school day and adequate housing.

The Guarantee also aims to promote equal opportunity for children at risk of poverty or social exclusion, and to break cycles of inter-generational disadvantage. In 2020, some 18 million children in the EU lived in households at risk of poverty of social exclusion. The plan suggests a target for the EU to reduce the number of people at risk of poverty or social inclusion by at least 15 million by 2030 (of which at least 5 million would be children).

The EU Child Guarantee offers countries guidance on integrated strategies to tackle child poverty and promote children’s well-being. It goes beyond welfare and labour market policies to promote access to quality services and the active participation of children themselves. It further highlights the importance of EU cohesion policy in mobilising reform.

Member State Governments will submit to the Commission a national action plan on how the Child Guarantee is to be progressed by mid-March 2022. Another key part of the Child Guarantee will be the development of an enabling policy framework, to deliver on milestones set out in the National Action Plan.

EU funds are available to support measures addressing child poverty, social exclusion and, by extension, the implementation of the Child Guarantee. Where specific proposals to address child poverty under the objectives of the Child Guarantee are accepted for funding by the Commission, details can and will, of course, be made available to the Deputy.