Proinsias De Rossa
Question:26 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if he will outline any role his Department is playing in the alleviation of poverty among Traveller families. [15297/01]
Written Answers. - Anti-Poverty Strategy.
The Government is strongly committed to eliminating poverty for all our people, including Travellers. My Department has been at the forefront in developing measures to ensure that the needs of Travellers and other ethnic groups are taken into account both in terms of policy development and service delivery.
The national anti-poverty strategy, co-ordinated by my Department, is underpinned by a number of principles which include ensuring equal access and participation for all and guaranteeing the rights of minorities, especially through anti-discrimination measures. The strategy recognises that Travellers have a high risk of poverty and identifies the need for specific strategies and targets in relation to the employment of Travellers.
In addition, it is a primary objective of the strategy to ensure that all Traveller children of primary school age will be enrolled and will participate fully in primary education within five years and that within ten years of the launch of the strategy, all Traveller children of second-level school-going age will complete junior cycle and 50% will complete senior cycle.
Issues of concern to minority ethnic groups – including Travellers – are being considered in the review of the national anti-poverty strategy provided for in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. As part of the review, existing national anti-poverty strategy targets will be revised as appropriate and consideration will be given to possible new targets under the themes of women's poverty, child poverty, older people, minority ethnic groups, health, and housing/accommodation. Working groups have been established, with representation from the social partners, towards this end and are due to report by end June. Following a completion process, the outcome of the review will be available later this year.
The Programme for Prosperity and Fairness identifies that the review of the strategy will address merging causes of poverty such as racism. The programme includes a range of commitments relevant to Travellers and racism in general, including a co-ordinated data strategy with specific reference to Travellers, data collection systems for monitoring poverty among Travellers and additional funding for the National Committee on Racism and Interculturalism, which includes a representative of this Department.
Issues relating to poverty in the Traveller community come under the remit of the current poverty proofing guidelines, which are incorporated into Cabinet procedures. The enhanced guidelines on poverty proofing, circulated to all Departments in 1999, featured a worked example which used the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act, 1998, as a guide to the practical implementation of poverty proofing.
Meeting the needs of the Traveller community will continue to be a priority for my Department, and indeed for this Government, in the fight against social exclusion.