Children are among the State’s most vulnerable citizens, but over the years many have been failed. The deeply upsetting stories of historic sexual abuse in religious schools which emerged earlier this week was followed by more prosaic news that many of today’s children are in families who cannot meet some basic needs, with some defined as living in poverty.
The increase in the numbers in these categories in recent years – with 230,000 judged as facing deprivation of some form – is a result of the inflationary spiral which is now running out of steam. But while some progress had been made in earlier years, the child poverty crisis has been a constant. Too many families simply lack the resources to play a normal part in society.
Policy can make a difference. The ongoing extension of the free primary school meals scheme, for example, provides a basic necessity to an increasing number of children, while free school books helps ensure participation in education.
However, the persistence of child poverty points to ongoing inadequacies in welfare supports. A large part of this comes down to prioritisation – a decision is needed to escape from the incrementalism which has characterised policy and limited progress. The Government decides where to tax and spend and can direct more supports at the younger families who are most vulnerable. Around one in five of households with children up to the age of five are living in poverty, according to the this week’s study by the Economic and Social Research Institute, in conjunction with Community Foundation Ireland, a simply unacceptable total. As Taoiseach Simon Harris said this week, a rich country like Ireland should be doing better.
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The previous edition of the ESRI study published this week proposed one possible approach. It is a second tier of child benefit payments. Welfare recipients already receive additional payments for children, but the wider second tier would also take in those at work and would be directly targeted at addressing child poverty. And it would clearly do so in a more cost effective way than increasing general child benefit, which gives cash to all families.
During the Covid-19 crisis and the subsequent surge in inflation, the Government focused on temporary supports to help families through two unprecedented events. Broadly, this was a reasonable approach and did support households. However, with inflation now on the decline, the time has come for a longer-term strategy focusing on building up permanent supports for families with children. The additional tier of child supports should be one of these.
With a general election approaching, this kind of strategic thinking may be in short supply on budget day. But what better time would there be for this Government to outline what it would do if re-elected, also laying the ground for those in Opposition to put forward their views? If child poverty is not highlighted as a priority issue in the election, then the crisis will just rumble on and on.