The Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs, Dermot Ahern, challenges a recent article claiming that the proportion of the population living in poverty has not changed
The recent article in The Irish Times on poverty (April 17th) does not accurately reflect the facts and is incorrect in a number of areas.
The article, which purports to be based on information provided by the Combat Poverty Agency, states that "the proportion of the population living in poverty remains essentially unchanged after five years".
That is just plain wrong.
The best definition of poverty, arrived at not by this Government but by our predecessors after considerable discussion and debate, is the "consistent poverty" measure.
Consistent poverty has fallen very significantly since 1997, lifting almost 200,000 people out of poverty. And we have set an objective of eliminating consistent poverty under the revised National Anti-Poverty Strategy by 2007.
The article quotes the Combat Poverty Agency as stating that "Ireland is in the top half of the EU poverty league". Here reference is being made not to the consistent poverty measure but to the percentage of people falling below various percentages of average incomes - what is referred to by the EU as the "risk of poverty". But again this statement is wrong.
The most recent comparative data published by the EU Commission show that on this measure, Ireland is below the EU average, i.e. in the bottom half of EU countries.
The argument is made that this Government's Budgets have been unfairly distributed amongst the population. This is also wrong. As the figures published by The Irish Times show, the impact of the five Budgets produced by this Government has been broadly equal with all income groups benefiting and - in fact - the greatest benefits in terms of the increase in disposable income going to those on low to middle incomes. As the Combat Poverty Agency and the ESRI have noted, the recent Budget was redistributive with the greatest gains accruing to those at the bottom of the income scale.
But more important to the wellbeing of our citizens has been the fact that these Budgets have supported the creation of almost 400,000 extra jobs. Four hundred thousand people who would be on welfare or have emigrated are now in decent jobs in Ireland.
This Government has done a lot in the area of social welfare. We have provided significant improvements in social welfare schemes amounting to over €3.3 billion (£2.6 billion) over the past five years. Since 1997, the monthly rates of Child Benefit have tripled from £30 (€38.10) per month to £92.60 (€117.60) for the lowest payment and from £39 (€49.50) to £116 (€147.30). Social welfare rates have improved significantly in real terms and payment dates for budgetary increases in rates have been brought forward each year and are now effective from the beginning of the tax year.
In fact, the Combat Poverty Agency immediately after Budget 2002 gave a "broad welcome" to the Budget as one "which will make progress in eliminating poverty".
The agency's director, Ms Helen Johnston, commended the policy direction of increasing welfare payments in line with wages. She also welcomed "the proportion of spending dedicated to welfare measures".
And she stated that the Child Benefit increases were "a further step in the right direction". Not only that, but the agency also welcomed Budget 2001 as a "welcome step in reducing child poverty" and pointed out that that Budget would "improve the living standards of people on social welfare and on lower incomes".
The record of this Government on social inclusion is second to none. The facts are that:
• Consistent poverty - a measure set by the previous government and recommended by the ESRI - was reduced from 10 per cent in 1997 to just over 6 per cent in 2000, lifting almost 200,000 people out of poverty;
• Consistent poverty among children was more than halved - falling from 17 per cent in 1997 to 8 per cent in 2000 - lifting 75,000 children out of poverty;
• Unemployment was reduced from 10.3 per cent in 1997 to around 4 per cent today, and long-term unemployment was reduced from 5.6 per cent in 1997 to just 1.2 per cent today.
But we will not rest on our record.
The National Anti-Poverty Strategy has been comprehensively reviewed and now contains new, more ambitious targets for the years ahead, including a commitment to eliminate consistent poverty.