The government needs to take steps to help people in poverty or at risk of it, as numbers are rising, according to the Opposition.

Nationalist spokesman on social welfare Clyde Puli referred to EU figures that showed how those at risk of falling below the poverty line increased by 6,000 in a year.

This had to be seen in the context of slower wage rises and a drop in retail trade, he said, adding the government had reneged on its pledge to eradicate poverty.

Mr Puli noted that up to a year ago salaries rose by an average of €500 annually, but in the past year they rose by an average of just €100.