The Minister for Children said she would be "fighting" the corner of children and families to ensure the "very best budgetary" decisions are made for them. Frances Fitzgerald yesterday said "very tough decisions" would have to be made in the budget and no department would be immune.
She was speaking at the 10-year anniversary of the Family Support Agency, which will fall under the remit of the new child and family support agency in January 2013. Asked about cuts to programmes funded by the Family Support Agency, she said: "I accept that agencies and organisations need quality funding . . . but it's about doing thing differently and about a reform agenda."
