Leading NGOs and Trade Unions team up to launch The Poor Can’t Pay campaign to lobby against cuts to basic social welfare payments and the minimum wage
Organisers call for more groups to support the campaign to protect the most vulnerable from the impact of the recession
Some of Ireland’s leading NGO’s and trade unions have joined forces to launch a new campaign called “The Poor Can’t Pay” which aims to mobilise active opposition to proposed cuts to basic social welfare payments or the minimum wage.
The Poor Can't Pay campaign said that people earning the minimum wage or living on social welfare did not cause Ireland's economic crisis and should not be forced to pay the price of the recession.
The campaign was launched as a joint initiative by the following NGO’s and trade unions: Age Action, Barnardos, CORI Justice, EAPN, Focus Ireland, INOU, Mandate, National Women’s Council of Ireland, SIPTU and SVP.
Organisers are now calling on other NGO’s and trade unions to sign up and support the campaign by logging on to www.thepoorcantpay.ie
You can also view the new Poor Can't Pay campaign web video
The Poor Can’t Pay said it is now vital for the Government to live up to its word to protect the most vulnerable in society from the impact of the recession.
Speaking on behalf of the Poor Can’t Pay campaign John Mark McCafferty of SVP said: “We hear all the time from many commentators who say it is inevitable that basic social welfare payments and the minimum wage must be cut. This campaign aims to highlight that most people in Ireland do not accept this view and they actually believe that we must do all we can to protect the most vulnerable people in our society.”
He added: "The reality is that cuts to welfare payments will mean people going without food, essential healthcare, children getting no presents at Christmas and pensioners wondering if they can afford to keep the heat on. We all need to ask ourselves as a nation:" Are these the people who should be forced to pay the cost of the economic crisis?"
The campaign also points out that people living on the minimum wage cannot afford to take any cut in income. Organisers said that having a job does not protect people on low incomes from hardship as 30% of all households at risk of poverty are headed by a person in employment.
Meanwhile, the Poor Can’t Pay campaign also called on the Government to reverse its decision to cut the Christmas welfare payment. The payment - widely referred to as the “Christmas bonus” - went to 1.3 million people last year and Minister Hanafin said at the time this was “a clear sign that helping those most in need of support remains a key priority for the Government.”
Mr. McCafferty said: “It's important to stress that the Christmas welfare payment is not a “bonus”. It is a key part of the income of the poorest households. If the Government does not make this payment it represents a real cut in income to the families and single people who can least afford it, adding to their hardships.”
For more, please visit:
http://www.thepoorcantpay.ie/