Labour demands action on child poverty crisis

Labour Leader Ivana Bacik TD speaking today at Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil called on Government to prioritise struggling families in Budget 2026.

Speaking in the Chamber, Deputy Bacik demanded targeted action on child poverty, the cost of living, and spiralling energy bills. She urged Government to abandon plans for ineffective tax cuts and instead provide direct support to households under pressure.

Deputy Bacik said:

“Families across Ireland are facing an emergency. For far too many, the cost of living has become unbearable. Prices are rising faster than wages, rents are unaffordable, and energy bills remain among the highest in Europe. Yet the Government is signaling that it will prioritise ineffective tax cuts that will do little to help those on the margins.

“One in five children – that’s 225,000 young people – are now living in poverty. That is a stain on us all. Parents are lying awake at night worrying about keeping the lights on, keeping the house warm, or being able to give their children a Christmas. Families are being pushed to the brink while Government talks down the prospect of a cost-of-living emergency package. That is shameful.

“We are seeing greedflation take root, with soaring food prices and energy companies raking in huge profits while households suffer. Meanwhile, child poverty rates have risen to levels not seen since Fianna Fáil crashed the economy in 2007. This Government has failed to put in place the safety net families needed since the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. They must act now before more lives are scarred by poverty and inequality.

“Labour is calling for a package of urgent supports. We need the reinstatement of targeted energy credits and a ban on disconnections for families who cannot pay. We need a second, targeted rate of child benefit to give immediate help to children in poverty. We need to abolish the means test for Carer’s Allowance and bring in a Cost of Disability Payment of at least €20 per week. These are practical steps Government can and must take now.

“Michael Martin’s response this afternoon was a total cop-out. He failed to outline what his Government will actually do to address the cost-of-living crisis. People are working hard in good jobs yet still cannot afford basic costs – rent, energy, food, and childcare. Households urgently need an indication that a sustainable safety net will be put in place so that families who can’t make ends meet are not left abandoned.

“Silly season is over. The focus of this Budget must be children and families, not internal party politics or tax cuts for the better-off. I say to the Taoiseach: when faced with political choices in Budget 2026, will you choose to support children and families? Will you make the investment needed to end child poverty? The time for excuses is over – now is the time to act.”