The Government has been told by independent experts that the level of consistent poverty is approaching a "floor" and that it is unlikely to be lowered significantly further.
In a private meeting last week, officials from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) told civil servants that new information suggested there was a consistent poverty "floor" of between 4 and 5 per cent, according to a record of the meeting seen by The Irish Times.
The Government has pledged in its Programme for Government to reduce the level of consistent poverty to 2 per cent, but latest figures show 7 per cent - or almost 300,000 people - were ranked as living in poverty.
Consistent poverty is measured by asking low-income households if they have experienced any one of eight signs of basic deprivation.
These include going without heating due to a lack of money; accumulating debt from ordinary living expenses; being unable to afford a roast once a week; being unable to afford two pairs of strong shoes; and being unable to afford a warm waterproof coat.
According to the record of the meeting, CSO officials said the 2 per cent target could not be achieved, mainly due to a significant section of households on low incomes, including lone parents, who continued to report some form of deprivation.
Of the indicators of basic deprivation, "debt problems" have proven to be common among those deemed to be in consistent poverty, Department of Social and Family Affairs officials say.
Minister for Social Affairs Séamus Brennan has targeted a number of welfare initiatives at groups who are more likely to experience poverty, such as lone parents and older people.
Several welfare increases he introduced in recent budgets have helped reduce the numbers considered to be at risk of poverty.
However, the levels of consistent poverty remain largely unchanged in recent years.
Last week, official figures on the scale of poverty in the Republic - the EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions - showed the level of consistent poverty was 7 per cent.
But the same survey found that the number of people at risk of poverty - a measurement known as relative poverty - dropped from 19.2 per cent to 18.5 per cent.
Relative poverty is calculated by estimating the number of individuals whose income is 60 per cent of the median income in the Republic, or €203 a week in 2006.
The drop was most significant among older people, where the proportion of older people at risk of poverty dropped from 27 to 20 per cent.
