I propose to take Questions Nos. 55 and 73 together.
I am pleased to advise the Deputies that the revised National Anti-Poverty Strategy, entitled Building an Inclusive Society, has been approved by Government and will be formally launched tomorrow by the Taoiseach and I.
This publication is the outcome of a process committed to under the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. This process involved a review of the methodology underlying the strategy and a review and revision, where appropriate, of existing targets. New targets in the areas of health and housing-accommodation as well as specific targets in relation to vulnerable groups are included in the revised strategy.
I am confident that the new strategy will provide the basis for further progress towards our goal of effectively eradicating poverty in this country and that it will add impetus to our policies for increasing social inclusion.
Building an Inclusive Society expands the scope of the National Anti-Poverty Strategy and strengthens it through bolder policies and robust institutional structures. The new targets will represent a more ambitious approach to the reduction of poverty in Ireland. The revised strategy also recognises the importance of the collection of accurate and timely data both nationally and in relation to specific groups.
The publication of the revised strategy comes at the end of a long consultation process in which the social partners fully participated. The framework document which sets out the results of this process in some detail will also be available from tomorrow.
The framework document and the Government's new strategy document aim to build on the significant progress we have made since the NAPS was launched. After the exceptional economic growth we have enjoyed in recent years, it is important now to put the policies in place that can continue to improve the lives of our most vulnerable citizens in the years ahead.
Question No. 56 answered with Question No. 53.