Groups welcome Burton’s refusal to cut child benefit

Parents and women’s rights advocates have welcomed indications that further cuts to universal child benefit payments will not be proposed for Budget 2014.

Joan Burton, the social protection minister, is opposing troika orders to cut €440m from her department and wants to cut just €200m at most, as revealed by the Irish Examiner this week.

The deputy Labourleader is also opposed to reducing child benefit payments and is examining cuts to household benefit assistance payments for energy and communications among alternative saving measures.

The National Women’s Council of Ireland (NWCI) said child benefit payments were an important part of a family’s income and households had already been hit with cuts in other budgets.

NWCI director Orla O’Connor said: “We welcome Minister Burton’s commitment to protect child benefit from further cuts. It is a crucial source of income for most and only a small contribution to the high costs of raising children in Ireland.”

Under the last budget, monthly child benefit payments were reduced by €10 for the first and second child, €18 for the third, and €20 for the fourth and subsequent children. The changes left a family with three children €456 less off.

Ms O’Connor said: “We have to remember that there have been vicious cuts to child benefit over the past number of years. Hundreds of millions of euro have already been saved on the child benefit bill since the cuts. NWCI estimates that families with four children have already seen a cumulative loss of €2,616 per annum.

“We now need to focus on investment in supports for children, particularly childcare, in Budget 2014.”

However, Ms Burton is examining measures to reduce the €270m annual bill for household benefit payments, which provide subsidies for electricity, gas, phone costs, and TV licences and are paid to over 416,000 recipients.

However, parents of children with special needs warned against any cuts to benefits.

Special Needs Parents’ Association chairwoman Lorraine Dempsey said: “We have come to the inevitable point in the year where kite flying begins.

“The commitment to protect core social welfare rates is admirable, but in the background there are non-core payments such as household benefits package and the respite care grant that carers also depend on to meet shortfalls between state benefits and essential outgoing household expenses. Every cent less has an impact.”

OPEN, which represents lone parents, welcomed indications child benefit would remain untouched but warned against other cuts. CEO Frances Byrne said: “It’s good that parents get a bit of clarity [on child benefit] but what of other cuts such as the back-to-school clothing and footwear allowance?

“This could cause enormous worry as it is a vital payment for parents.”