The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) has warned the continued reliance on one-off measures in Budget 2024 leaves households exposed to the impact of the cost of living.
The charity welcomed a number of measures brought in by the Government in Tuesday's budget when it came to education.
Included in the announcements were free schoolbooks for the junior cycle, and an increase in the minimum wage, payment of Child Benefit to students who are 18 and still in school, and an increase in the Susi grant.
However, SVP have questioned some of the one-off measures in the budget, including social protection payments, which the Government announced would be an increase of €12, half of what the charity had called for.
SVP also expressed their disappointment over no increased support for children in Direct Provision, and pointed out the Back-to-School Allowance wasn't made permanent.
They say the budget allocation for homeless prevention is "totally inadequate", while there is not enough support for the lowest income families.
Speaking after the budget, Dr Tricia Keilthy, SVP's head of social justice, said: "This Budget was a real test of the Taoiseach's commitment to addressing child poverty, and it has delivered on a number of fronts.
"However, we are dismayed to see the Qualified Payment to the poorest children will only increase by €4, which is well below the recommended increase of €10 for children under 12 and €15 for children over 12. The inadequate increases in core rates will also mean families forgoing essentials as they still grapple with the cost-of-living crisis.
"We are also concerned about in-work poverty among lone parents in particular. The increase in the Minimum Wage is welcome, but significant poverty traps still exist, and not enough support with childcare was targeted to the lowest-income families.
"Poverty is not all about income, but without sufficient investment in income supports, a real living wage and affordable childcare for low-income families, it will be impossible for the Government to meet their own poverty reduction targets.
"We regret that the Government has not committed to introducing a weekly cost of disability payment but acknowledges the extra temporary payments for carers and people with disabilities will provide some short-term support.
"Overall, it is very much what we feared following last year's Budget when the emphasis was on one-off payments and less on actions that would seriously impact poverty reduction among those in work on low pay and those in receipt of social protection payments."
