The Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVP), the largest charitable organisation in Ireland and the people it helps are facing an extraordinarily difficult and challenging time. At present, due to the social problems created by the economic difficulties, the SVP is spending €1m a week on its services to help those in need.
Calls for assistance to its offices which are located all around the country, have increased by between 30% and 40% this year. The Society expects the trend to continue into 2010. One-in-four of calls for help came from people who were first-time callers to the SVP. More and more Government and voluntary agencies, social workers, Social Welfare staff and MABS staff are referring people to the SVP for assistance.
This is underlined in the pre-Budget submission which the Society has made to the Government
“It is the sincere hope of the SVP that the Government’s rhetoric earlier in the year about protecting the most vulnerable will be matched by its actions in the forthcoming Budget,” said the National President of the Society, Mairead Bushnell.
“The signs of that happening are not good as in recent months there has been no mention of protecting the vulnerable from any of the establishment groups.”
The SVP pre-budget submission details the significant hardship that has been inflicted on social welfare recipients and the low-paid through the myriad of cuts which have already been implemented across the social welfare, education and health services.
SVP PROPOSALS TO GOVERNMENT ON THE BUDGET
• Adequate funding should be provided to ensure that commitments in the National Action Plan for Social Inclusion are honoured.
• The SVP is very concerned that prescription drugs in Ireland cost substantially more than in many other European countries and urges greater use of generic drugs to yield savings.
• Use NAMA to tackle Social Housing waiting list.
The full pre-Budget submission by the Society of St.Vincent de Paul, including the detailed proposals, can be read on here.