HANAFIN TOLD "REVERSE EDUCATION CUTS AND SAVE CHILD BENEFIT" BY ALLIANCE [childrensrights.ie]
- Published: 09 October 2009
The Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Mary Hanafin TD, will today (9 October) be told to reverse the education cuts and save the Child Benefit payment by the Children's Rights Alliance in a Pre-Budget Forum, at Dublin's St Andrew's Resource Centre. The Alliance, a coalition of over 90 NGOs campaigning for the rights and needs of children, argues that last year's savage cuts have had a devastating effect on vulnerable families, and argues that the State will fall into a deeper economic crisis if it continues to target children's services. The Alliance also exposes Ireland as the only EU state that has a policy of targeting children for cuts; other states facing similar economic challenges have not yet targeted vital children's services, like education, health and social welfare. The Alliance believes that safeguarding the best interests of children in Ireland "now and in the future“ is the only way out of the country's crippling economic nightmare, stating: "now, more than ever, children must not be forgotten."
Full Story: www.childrensrights.ie
