The Taoiseach has said that a key issue for him in the budget will be child poverty. I agree with the focus, but his words ring very hollow because we have heard all this before. The previous Government made reducing child poverty a priority. What has happened since? The number of children living in consistent poverty has nearly doubled to more than 100,000 in 2024. That is not a blip. Nearly 5,000 children are now homeless and living in emergency accommodation. That so many children are being failed and left behind at a time when the State coffers are overflowing is utterly shameful. The Government's policy is not just failing vulnerable children and their families in the present. What is it going to do in its term to set out a roadmap to end child poverty?

In the past two to three years, some fundamental decisions were taken, for example, to provide free access to school meals, which is something that was not there previously on the current scale. Free access to school books has had a significant positive impact on low-income families. The Deputy does not acknowledge that at all.

The recent SILC report is concerning. I prioritised the reduction of child poverty for the next budget. We did take measures in regard to child support payments and gave the biggest increase ever in the last budget. We are looking at a range of measures to reduce child poverty in the forthcoming budget. We will see then.