The Irish Organisation for the Unemployed has described as unwise and counter-productive plans for a cut in social welfare payments.

It’s reported the Government is planning to reduce job seekers benefit for those under 23 by 20 percent to encourage more young people into training.

It’s also reported a cut of two to three percent in the basic unemployment benefit is being planned to save between 100 and 150 million euro.

Bríd O’Brien from the Organisation for the Unemployed says cutting welfare support is not the right solution: “If they want young people to go on educational training programmes that will secure their employment in the future when job creation hopefully re-starts, the I think they should be doing that through developing a more proactive and focussed employment service – not a cut in the basic social welfare rate.”

She added: “Impoverishing people is not the way to encourage people to look at alternative careers.”

Meanwhile writing in the Sunday Business Post the Minister for Finance says the 20 billion euro gap between incoming tax revenue and day-to-day spending on health, education and social welfare cannot be sustained.

Brian Lenihan says four billion in cuts will stabilise the deficit and send a clear message that we have the capacity to tackle our difficulties.