Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald slammed the Government for leaving behind middle-income earners who are in “dire straits” out of back-to-school allowance increases.
She said any family with a household income of €621 a week will not get “a red cent” of the allowance and called for it to be extended to cover an additional 500,000 children “whose middle income parents are in desperate need of support.”
It comes after the Government announced the rate of the back-to-school allowance will be increased by €100.
Read More: Changes to Back to School allowance - When it will be paid and will it be extended?
Speaking during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil on Wednesday, Ms McDonald said she welcomed the Government’s “U-turn” after “weeks of stubbornness”.
She said: “I am glad that you have finally listened to the Opposition, at least in part, because any extra financial support for families on fixed and low-incomes struggling to make it to the end of the week is a very good thing.
“But there’s a problem, you’ve left behind middle-income families who are in dire straits.
“You’ve left behind these families who struggle to pay the mortgage and the rent, who can’t afford to put fuel in the car to get to work or pay extortionate energy bills, families whose grocery bill is now through the roof to such an extent that many have started to cut back on basics.”
Labour leader Ivana Bacik said the back-to-school allowance, expansion of the hot meals programme and waiving school transport fees was not enough.
She said schemes like making school books free would significantly reduce the burden on families.
In response, Public Expenditure Minister Michael McGrath said the expansion of the DEIS schools scheme announced would mean that 60,000 more children would get a free hot meal, which represented “real change” and made “real difference”.
