Childcare costs and core funding
The Deputy says the Government has failed to deliver €200 monthly childcare and highlights a family whose fees rose from €1,500 to €2,400 after its crèche lost core funding. The Minister cites existing investment and promises a plan to improve affordability and access, but gives no immediate solution.
I suspect quite a few people voted for Fine Gael in the most recent election because it promised that it would reduce childcare costs for everybody to €200 per month. It has spectacularly failed to deliver on that promise, which is a very serious cost-of-living issue for many. To give the Minister one instance, this week, in my area, I have been inundated by emails from parents whose crèche provider has pulled out of core funding. To cite one case, their monthly fees have gone from €1,500 up to €2,400. They are already paying a mortgage; that is now a double mortgage. There are many others like them. The Government said it is going to deliver 800 State-led crèche places. One of those crèches is in my area of Shanganagh. It is now very clear that those places are not going to be €200 either, despite the Government's promise. When is it going to deliver childcare costs of €200 per month for everybody? At the moment, it is failing a lot of parents very seriously.
Comment on this
We have over the last number of years, in particular in previous Governments, invested hundreds of millions of euro in childcare and making sure we can provide early childhood care and education, ECCE, spaces for children to which every child has access. About 96% or 97% of children are accessing the ECCE programme, which is available to parents. Beyond that, we have set out a very clear commitment in the programme for Government not just to make childcare affordable but to make sure that, with a growing population, there is access to places as well. That has become a much more significant challenge in areas with a growing population. We have a five-year programme for Government. We have made very clear commitments that we will provide the places and reduce the costs for parents. The plan and intention are that, over a series of budgets, we will be able to deliver that for people. We have not moved away from that commitment. That commitment is there.
Comment on this
What about the people I mentioned?
Comment on this
The Minister for Children, Disability and Equality is setting out and working on a plan as to how we can achieve that overall.
Comment on this
What about these people? How are they going to pay?