Debate contribution: Child Poverty

Debate contribution by Ms Cara Hunter on 14 October 2025.

MLA

Ms Cara Hunter

Party at the time

Social Democratic and Labour Party

Date

14 October 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Opposition Business

Heading

Child Poverty

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5181177

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I welcome the opportunity to wind up the debate on this important motion. With one in five of our children living in absolute poverty, we are failing not just a statistic but an entire generation of young people in Northern Ireland. The latest Northern Ireland poverty and income inequality report, which is for 2023-24, confirmed that 21% of children living in the North are growing up in absolute poverty after housing costs. That is roughly 95,000 children — 95,000 young lives starting off from behind, through no fault of their own. In the SDLP, we know that poverty in childhood is not temporary. It sets the trajectory for health outcomes, and, as we have heard at the Education Committee, it impacts on educational attainment and access to life opportunities and job opportunities for years to come. A child born into poverty is more likely to fall behind at school. That is one of the driving factors that led the SDLP to introduce the Period Products (Free Provision) Act 2022 to provide free products to keep girls in the classroom and partaking in sport out on the pitch and to make sure that there are no barriers to education or extracurricular activities. Children in poverty are more likely to suffer poor mental and physical health and to struggle to find stable work as an adult. Every piece of research tells us that investing early saves money later in life, but we are still firefighting the consequences of poverty rather than tackling the root cause. The figures that I mentioned are shocking, but they are not evenly spread. As a representative for the north-west, I note that the highest rates of child poverty are in areas in the north-west, with parts of my constituency falling into the Derry City and Strabane District Council area, while other areas, such as Belfast, have persistent deprivation. Families in the north-west are among those hardest hit by rising food and energy costs and, of course, by the impact of welfare reforms.

I thank the Member for his intervention. Yes, I agree. I am sure that all of us, in our roles as MLAs or as individuals, have at some point been in homes where children struggle with poverty and lack of access to food, which is absolutely heartbreaking. We know that children who go to school on an empty stomach cannot focus in class as much as their peers who come from homes with a lot of wealth. It is important to note that. Child poverty is a choice: it is political-will choice and a policy choice. Our emphasis here is on the Executive's need to act. Regional balance must mean equal opportunity for every child, not postcode inequality. The proposed anti-poverty strategy gives little cause for confidence that anything will change. We feel that strongly because there is no clear delivery timetable and no dedicated budget.

No, thank you: you have had your time. Without those things, it is not a strategy but merely a statement of good intent on paper. The Executive promised that eradicating child poverty would be a defining mission, yet the draft anti-poverty strategy falls short of what families urgently need. Those of us who were out in our communities and in our constituencies just before the school season know that it is about families who cannot afford new school shoes or to get a raincoat for their child or children. Santa is getting ready to come to town, and a lot of families are anxious about what Christmas Day will look like. Those families will be listening today, and they will demand answers. We know what works. As was mentioned, we know that Scotland's child payment is lifting thousands of children out of poverty. That is backed by statistics. We feel strongly that a Northern Ireland child payment could do the same here. Parents also speak passionately about the cost of childcare, which pushes them out of work and study and reduces families' household income. That is why we need to reinforce the importance of truly accessible affordable childcare in the North that reflects real costs and supports parents and families to stay in employment. We on the Education Committee have often spoken about free school meals. The SDLP firmly believes that that scheme must be expanded so that no child sits in class hungry or is embarrassed about their family income. Hidden poverty is massive in our society, with working parents who fall between the cracks making just enough money to not be able to access certain benefits while struggling profusely to make ends meet. Today, we must ask this: does the draft strategy truly meet need? Does it constitute a genuine, measurable plan of action, or is it simply a collection of worthy statements without the structure, targets or accountability that the law requires? The draft strategy lacks clear outcomes or milestones. Without those, how can it meet the statutory definition of a strategy —

— No, thank you — let alone be based on objective need? What does "objective need" even mean here? The draft leaves it undefined, to be interpreted differently across different Departments. That is something that we talk about often: all political parties believe that cross-departmental engagement is a priority in the eradication of child poverty. It should not be just a Department for Communities issue. We need to see the Housing Executive and the Education, Health and Economy Departments play a role and all be on the same page. I will address Members' comments. Cathy Mason rightly mentioned that children are not in control of their circumstances, and we often see two types of childhood, one defined by poverty and the other entirely free from it. Linda Dillon and Diane Forsythe touched on the importance of highlighting the challenges and needs of child carers in the North. Sian Mulholland talked about the importance of having an intersectional strategy that is adequately resourced; I agree. That is a difficult issue, because, in this Building, we sometimes see fantastic strategies on paper but do not see the resource put behind them to get measurable outcomes. Colm Gildernew reiterated the paramount need for there to be accountability in the strategy and the Committee's stance that child poverty is a choice. If Budgets are moral documents, how we spend our money tells our children what we believe that they are worth. The cost of inaction is counted not just in pounds but in the lost potential — so much of it — of our young people. Today, it is important to be honest about where we are at and, more importantly, to be ambitious about where we can get to. Let us build a fit for purpose anti-poverty strategy that is shaped by lived experience, backed by appropriate funding and focused on outcomes. Every child deserves the same start in life and the power to shape their own future, rather than to be trapped by their circumstances. We had a number of young people here today. I am delighted that they could be present to be part of the discussion, because, ultimately, we are talking about them. The Executive hold the key to bringing about genuine change, but, Minister and Members, the draft strategy is nowhere near close to delivering for families and children right across the North.

1,226 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:36 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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