€285 two-tier ‘targeted’ Child Benefit ‘won’t be for this year’ blow for Irish families amid ‘national emergency’ alert

A BENEFIT to tackle child poverty is not on the table for budget discussions this year.

And the Government has been blasted for not yet delivering a proposed weekly kids’ payment.

One TD said they “must stop treating child poverty as an inevitable feature of society and start treating it as the national emergency it is.”

One suggestion is that the Working Family Payment and the Child Support Payment would be scrapped and replaced by a new targeted Child Benefit payment.

At the moment, every family gets €140-a-month in Child Benefit payments — regardless of the household’s income.

This primary Child Benefit would remain the same, with a second tier created for families on lower incomes who’d get an extra weekly payment.

Social Protection Minister Dara Calleary recently launched a public consultation process in order to get the public’s views.

The public consultation process closed this week with a report due to be compiled in the Department of Social Protection on the issue.

But The Irish Sun understands the creation of this new second tier of Child Benefit is not on the table when it comes to budget discussions for this year.

A source said: “The public consultation has just closed and it is being looked at, but it is not going to feature in budget talks this year.

“There is still too much work to do on it and there are complications around how to set it up.

“It won’t be for this year.”

Meanwhile, Labour TD Mark Wall said: “Labour has called for the introduction of a new targeted second rate of Child Benefit for families most in need — backed by the ESRI and the Commission on Taxation and Welfare.

“Properly implemented, this measure would significantly reduce child poverty and provide direct support to families who are facing the greatest challenges.”

He added: “Government must stop treating child poverty as an inevitable feature of society and start treating it as the national emergency that it is.

“The time for reports and promises has passed. The time for action is now.”

The 2026 Child Poverty Monitor found that 95,170 children – one in every 12 – were living in consistent poverty in 2025.

And the grim report, published by the Children’s Rights Alliance, found that 239,146 kids – one in every five – were experiencing enforced deprivation, meaning their household was unable to afford some of the most basic items needed.

A study, published as part of the ESRI’s Budget Perspectives 2026 series, previously said the proposed social welfare shake-up would lift 55,000 children out of income poverty and 25,000 from consistent poverty.

Researchers called for a second tier of means-tested Child Benefit, worth €285 per child and costing the State €772 million each year, claiming it would be the “most cost-effective option.”

The Department of Social Protection previously confirmed to The Irish Sun that existing Child Benefit payment will “remain unchanged” and “will not be impacted” by the introduction of any potential new payments.

Fine Gael leader Simon Harris has already begun to discuss the Coalition’s cash plans with his party and other ministers as he prepares for his first budget as Finance Minister after replacing Paschal Donohoe, who stepped down in November.

And earlier this week, the Social Democrats said a second tier of Child Benefit would help eliminate child poverty by 2030.

Party TD Aidan Farrelly made the statement after claiming the latest child poverty figures “will be a stain on this Government’s term in office,” unless “meaningful measures” are introduced to tackle income poverty.

Farrelly said the child poverty report was a “shameful indictment of failed Government policy” and that there is “no excuse” for any kid to experience it in Ireland.

He continued: “In a properly functioning society, parents would not have to choose between food, clothing, lighting and heat due to cost of living pressures.”

The Kildare North TD urged the Government to introduce targeted supports for families – including a second tier of Child Benefit.

He said: “But child poverty is not inevitable. Bad policymaking by successive Fianna Fail/Fine Gael governments is what has allowed structural inequality, poverty and deprivation to exist.

“If the Government is serious about its commitment to eliminate child poverty by 2030, it needs to address income inequality.

“This can be done by introducing a range of targeted supports for vulnerable households, including a second tier of Child Benefit.”