Children in poverty - Jobs are the best answer to poverty

Even though a great number of people have had to accept a reduced standard of living, some a greatly reduced standard, the presentation by Ita Mangan, chairman of the Advisory Group on Tax and Social Welfare, to an Oireachtas committee must provoke some soul searching for anyone who imagines they have a social conscience.

Anyone who believes that every child deserves something at least approaching an opportunity to realise their potential must feel chastened by the image of Ireland she offered. This is true whether you hope for a more secular Ireland, or take comfort in the deeply challenging traditions of Christianity.

The figures Ms Mangan collated described a society failing far too many of its citizens, especially children. It might be going too far to say the situation she described is Dickensian but not by very much; they certainly do not reflect a modern, progressive and relatively wealthy society.