No child should have to live in a home that’s forced to cut back on meals while supermarkets are raking in massive profits, according to Social Democrats children spokesperson Aidan Farrelly.<\/p>\n
Speaking on today’s Barnardos report, Deputy Farrelly said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThe details of today\u2019s damning Barnardos report are shocking but not surprising. Huge increases in grocery prices in recent years means families are spending an extra \u20ac3,000 a year to put food on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn increasing number of families simply can\u2019t afford these prices. In the past year alone, grocery prices have increased at three times the rate of general inflation, leading to parents cutting back on meals just to feed their kids.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs the Barnardos report makes clear, simply paying for the basics \u2013 rent, energy and food \u2013 is now increasingly difficult. Around one-in-five families have cut back on or gone without heating in the past six months, while one third of parents have gone into arrears on energy bills due to insufficient income.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn a wealthy country like ours, there is simply no excuse for families to be struggling in this way. Regrettably, under this government, deprivation and child poverty are getting worse. Last year, for example, the number of children living in consistent poverty nearly doubled.<\/p>\n
\u201cInstead of doing anything to address this crisis, the government is sitting back as it grows. Shamefully, they failed to even ensure that profit gouging by supermarket chains is not contributing to skyrocketing prices.<\/p>\n
“This is why, tomorrow, the Social Democrats will bring forward a motion to the D\u00e1il to tackle sky-high grocery prices. We have put forward several solutions \u2013 including full transparent around profits and more teeth for regulators \u2013 and will be asking the government to implement them.<\/p>\n
“Additionally, a second, targeted tier of child welfare payment for those who need it would be a powerful tool in reducing child poverty. This must be seriously considered by government ahead of Autumn’s budget.”<\/p>\n
July 8th, 2025<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" No child should have to live in a home that’s forced to cut back on meals while supermarkets are raking in massive profits, according to Social Democrats children spokesperson Aidan Farrelly. Speaking on today’s Barnardos report, Deputy Farrelly said: \u201cThe details of today\u2019s damning Barnardos report are shocking but not surprising. Huge increases in grocery […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":11557,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[396,542,540,650,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aidan-farrelly","category-child-poverty","category-children","category-cost-of-living","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n