Debate contribution: Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill: Second Stage
Debate contribution by Mr Danny Baker on .
- MLA
- Mr Danny Baker
- Party at the time
- Sinn Féin
- Date
- 13 April 2026
- Type
- Debate contribution
- Business
- Private Members' Business
- Heading
- Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill: Second Stage
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5483212
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I beg to move
Go raibh maith agat, a Phríomh-Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
I start by thanking the Speaker's Office and the Bill Office for all the support that they have given me over the past two years to get the Bill to this stage. I could not have done it without the help of Trevor and Barbara in particular, and Frank and Stephanie were absolutely brilliant. Their expertise has been second to none, especially for me as a new MLA. Thanks very much. As I said, the Bill has been two years in the making. I wish that I did not have to bring such legislation to the House. I would have much preferred the Minister of Education to have reinstated the holiday meal payments when we came back to the Assembly and he took office. The Bill would amend the Education and Libraries Order 1986. Its policy intent is clear: it aims to support 90,000 children who are entitled to free school meals. It would cover the cost of what a parent would have to pay for a school meal at this time. I am happy to work with everyone in the Chamber to strengthen the Bill if they feel that that is necessary. If the Minister would like to have even more input, I am happy to work with him. In my previous contribution in the Chamber, I said that I would draw a line in the sand and work tirelessly with everyone here to deliver for those who need it most. I will say this, however: if Members stand up today and say that the Bill is poorly drafted or rushed or that it does not solve poverty, they will be taking a negative and cowardly approach. Today, Members of the Assembly have an opportunity to work together to play a role in ending child poverty. Will the Bill alone end child poverty? No, it will not, but it is one piece of a wider puzzle. The debate is not new to the Chamber. Holiday hunger payments were in place during COVID but were stopped because they could be cut. That is what I am looking to change. Since I have been an MLA, there have been a number of debates on motions calling for the payments to be reinstated. The motions all passed without a Division. Evidence suggests that some children can be weeks or months behind their classmates when they return to school after the holidays. Why is that the case? It is because they are hungry and malnourished. The links between deprivation and underachievement are well known. Fifteen per cent of children here live in absolute poverty, with one in three children affected by a lack of food. We must ask this question of the Minister: how can children learn when they are hungry?
The reality in our schools is that teachers run breakfast clubs, wash uniforms and buy food out of their own pockets, but neither they nor our community and voluntary sector and youth clubs, which do a lot of heavy lifting in our communities, can fight child poverty alone. I have spoken about this before: I have been involved in youth work for a number of years. The Lagmore Youth Project in my constituency ran a programme a number of years ago, which was about ending holiday hunger, although the children did not know that. We had the use of a park, thanks to Belfast City Council, and the scheme was supported through different funding mechanisms. I even brought my children to it, because it was so much fun to engage with and be part of. However, it was only possible because people volunteered and people like me were there to support it — the funding is not always there. Something became clear very early on in the project about a number of children, but one child in particular sticks in my mind, because he was the same age as my youngest. He was filling his wee pockets with food. Why was he filling his wee pockets with food? There was not enough food at home over the summer, and he had an older sister. The older sister was a teenager, so she was not going to come to the wee camp that we were running. It is a sad indictment of society that a child of that age had to really think about food security. That wee child had all the worries in the world. My child did not and does not. That really should not be the case. While we were able to identify that family and get more support to them, that only happened by pure chance because that scheme was running. I want that story to stick in people's minds today because I know that a raft of statistics will be pushed out. Those will just be numbers on a piece of paper, but it is about making a real-life impact, and we have a chance to do so today. It is about taking a step forward to help 90,000 children right across the North and all our communities. That is why it matters. Children who live in poverty experience poorer physical and mental health, lower educational attainment and reduced lifetime opportunities. Those are facts. The Bill will help improve children's concentration levels, because they will come to school ready to learn, not hungry. The Bill will play a role in raising our most disadvantaged children's educational attainment. That is what I mean. I go back to that story about the wee child who was the same age as my youngest. How can we expect that child to go into school to prepare for a transfer test and go up against children who are being tutored for that test? It is just not a fair system. The system is broken, and we have to play our role, alongside our community and voluntary sector, teachers and school leaders. That is why the Education Department has a huge role to play in ending child poverty. In my view, it is the very least that it can do. As I said, the Bill is only one piece of the puzzle. The cost-of-living crisis is crippling families. The Bill targets the most disadvantaged in our communities. In my child's school, 50% of children receive free school meals, and that is the case in many schools, be they in Foyle or in West Belfast on the Falls Road or the Shankill. I want to see the Assembly taking forward other initiatives to end child poverty. One example of that could be universal free school meals. The recent rise in the cost of school meals is having a detrimental impact on families across the North. We have heard that at the Education Committee and in all our offices. Of course, any interventions and legislation that are aimed at tackling child poverty will have a cost. I am not shying away from that, but I ask all of you this: what is the case for not doing it? Will the Bill have ramifications for the Minister and his priorities? Yes, it will. The Bill is projected to cost, on average, £21 million a year over the next 10 years, based on 100% uptake. The present uptake is in and around 80%, so, if it stays that way, the Bill will technically not cost that amount. However, I hope that the payments will encourage more to take up free school meals. While £21 million sounds like a lot, in reality, it is around 0·6% of the Education budget. That is a very small proportion of the Education budget. Are we underfunded by the British Government? Yes, we are, but Ministers have their own budgets and priorities. In my view, budgets must be targeted towards those who need the most support. That is why my Bill is in front of all of you today. The time for talking about holiday hunger is over. You either stand with me and help to deliver this important piece of legislation, or you do not. Supporting a motion is very easy, but we are elected to make difficult decisions. For my part, this is a very easy decision. I may not convince everyone in the House, but I only need a majority. Your vote matters to all the children in your communities. What is the cost of not supporting it? I look forward to the debate.
1,405 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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