Fianna Fáil party spokesperson on Children, Aisling Dempsey has highlighted the importance of Budget 2026 in tackling child poverty and the most vulnerable.
In Budget 2026, Fianna Fáil is making permanent, sustained decisions and in particular tackling child poverty. A distributional analysis shows strongest improvements in disposable income for lower income households.
“Budget 2026 turns the dial on how we tackle child poverty. Every child is entitled to a fair start in life, and we want to ensure that we put the support in place to do just that.
“Minister Calleary has secured a record social protection package of €2bn, with increases to social protection weekly rates by €10 and The Working Family Payment income thresholds will increase by €60 per week to help families with the cost of day to day living.
Fianna Fáil is the party of education, and we believe no child should be at an educational disadvantage. That is why in this years Budget, we have established a new DEIS Plan and a new DEIS Plus Scheme which will support the children at risk of educational disadvantage.
“I welcome the establishment of a new DEIS Plan and a new DEIS Plus scheme, supporting children who need it most. The DEIS Plan sets out the department’s vision for education to more fully become a proven pathway to better opportunities for those at risk of disadvantage and social exclusion.
The weekly Child Support Payment rates have increased by €8 for children under 12 and by €16 for children over 12.
“Fianna Fail’s Budget is determined to tackle child poverty. We want to provide families with the support they need. We understand families face issues with the cost of living, but permanent more sustainable measures will ensure our strongest improvements in disposable income will be for lower income households.”
Deputy Dempsey concluded by stating we are ambitious in our targets to drive change in child poverty and will leave no stone unturned to achieve that.
“Fianna Fáil will leave no stone unturned when it comes to tackling child poverty. Our aim is to have child poverty no more than 3% by 2030. That is ambitious, and we have made a solid start with the measures announced in today’s Budget.
“This is the first budget of this Government. One Budget cannot achieve everything that we want. By taking a targeted and sustainable approach, we will protect jobs, safeguard our economy and support households that need it most.
ENDS