Parents Against Child Benefit Cuts to protest outside Dáil

A group campaigning against the proposed cuts to child benefit will take to the streets today to call on the Government not to make any further cuts in the upcoming Budget.

The group, Parents Against Child Benefit Cuts, is to stage a protest outside the Dáil at midday, urging the Labour Party to stick to its pre-election promises not to touch the payments.

Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton, has previously indicated that child and family income supports could be reduced by as much as €40 a week.

Group spokesperson Niamh Ui Cheallaigh said that the cuts are just too much.

"Last year we've seen larger families mainly affected by cuts to child benefit, where anyone with more than two children would have seen a large cut in their child benefit payments," she said.

"And it was written then that they would again reduce that payment again this year to bring it down to €140 per child, so larger families, again, if the proposed cuts go ahead, would see a large cut."