JOHN (11): begging on a Dublin street

At first John asked for "any spare change". The 11-year-old was standing on Dublin's Wicklow Street, a paper cup in his hand.

As this reporter stopped to give him some change, the sandy-haired boy asked if he might instead be bought "some groceries, milk and bread". Clean and warmly-dressed, he began to explain that he and his family were from Cork, but were "just back from England".

A woman across the street with a baby in a buggy called over, explaining she was John's mother. The 31-year-old said she had brought her four children back to Dublin from London, because her husband was spending all the money they got "on drink".

"I wanted to bring them back here because we no one there. We're in a caravan in Clondalkin now, which we got from a friend of my family. I have to pay him off for it."

Her nine and four year olds were with a friend yesterday while she brought John and an 18 month old child into town "to try and get some money together for Christmas". She went to the Homeless Persons Unit in Castle Street when they arrived back a few weeks ago, but it had yet to assess her claim.

John gets about €20 a day begging. Asked how he feels about begging, he shrugged and said he would prefer to be in school. "I don't know what Christmas is going to be like. I just don't know about that yet."