Tá fáilte roimh an Aire, an Teachta Foley, chuig an Seanad.

I move:

“That Seanad Éireann:

recognises that:

- early childhood is a time of great opportunity to shape a child’s development and build a secure foundation for their future;

- for children to achieve their full potential they need opportunities for care and education;

- the role of the early years’ educator is valuable, as they play an important part in supporting children's development, learning and care;

agrees that:

- many families across the country are paying high fees for childcare places;

- demand for childcare remains higher than available supply in certain parts of the country, particularly for younger children;

- in a very competitive labour market and with low levels of unemployment, recruitment and retention is a challenge for the childcare sector;

notes that:

- Budget 2026 allocated a record of nearly €1.5 billion for early learning and childcare, a 12 per cent increase on last year and up from €260 million a decade ago;

- Core Funding for 2026/27 is a record €482 million, a €90 million increase year-on year, and an 86 per cent increase since its 2022/23 launch;

- over 93 per cent of eligible providers participated in Core Funding for the last full programme year, reflecting sustained sector-wide support;

- a key condition of receiving the significant State funding that is available through Core Funding is that a partner service adheres to the fee management system, which includes a freeze on fees at 2021 levels and fee caps;

- backed by €135 million in capital funding under the National Development Plan, the State is directly building and acquiring childcare facilities for the first time, with a number of new locations due to be confirmed this year;

- Nurturing Skills: The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare 2022 – 2028 aims to support and strengthen the ongoing process of professionalisation for the workforce in early years and school age childcare;

- ringfenced pay increases of €90 million over two years (€45 million in 2025 and €45 million in 2026) are in place to support improved pay in the sector;

acknowledges that:

- average out of pocket costs to parents for childcare are down 36 per cent since 2022;

- already, many families pay less than the target maximum of €200 per month;

- the number of childcare services is rising, with a net increase of 255 services in 2025;

- enrolments increased by 25 per cent between 2022 and 2025, from 197,000 to 247,000 children;

- this growth occurred despite a 12 per cent decline in the under-five population over the same period;

- childcare closures have decreased by 25 per cent since 2022;

- the early years’ workforce has expanded to over 42,000 staff, a 36 per cent increase since 2020;

- the latest Employment Regulation Order (ERO) delivered an average 10 per cent pay rise to over two-thirds of the workforce;

calls for:

- affordable, accessible, and high-quality childcare to be available to all families across the country;

- the reduction of childcare fees further in order to progress towards the target maximum of €200 per month, per child within the lifetime of this Government;

- continued State investment in childcare capacity, including the building or purchasing of State-owned facilities in areas of unmet need, especially those in rural areas and those with high population density;

- the prioritisation of co-location for all new school building projects, with the primary school and childcare facility located on the one campus, in order to create a more integrated education environment, and to ease pressure on parents when it comes to multiple school drop-off points;

- the Government to continue to support recruitment and retention in the sector; and

- the implementation of the Continuous Professional Development actions in the Nurturing Skills Workforce Plan by 2028 to enhance professionalisation and attract and retain a high-quality early years and school age care workforce.”

I second the motion.

The debate will follow our normal pattern. Each Senator will have six minutes. We will begin with Senator Margaret Murphy O’Mahony who, as the proposer, has 16 minutes. As I understand it, she wishes to share time.

That is correct. It will be divided into one slot of ten minutes and two slots of three minutes.

Senator Margaret Murphy O’Mahony will have ten minutes, while Senators Fiona O’Loughlin and Anne Rabbitte will have three minutes each. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire, an Teachta Foley. I am pleased to speak today on this important Fianna Fáil motion on childcare. At its heart, this motion recognises a simple truth. While some families continue to face challenges in accessing affordable, high-quality childcare, substantial progress has been made in recent years. We must continue to build on that progress. Fianna Fáil is committed to ensuring that Ireland is a good place to raise a family where every child is given an equal start in life and equal opportunities to succeed.

We know that early childhood is one of the most important stages in a person’s life. It is a time of enormous opportunity when children develop the foundations that will support them throughout their education and into adulthood. To achieve their full potential, children need access to quality care and early education, and parents and guardians need the necessary support to give their children the best possible start. That is why the Government has made childcare one of its key priorities.

Since 2020, State investment in early learning and childcare has more than doubled, increasing from €638 million to €1.52 billion in 2026. This represents an unprecedented level of commitment to children, families and the childcare sector. The focus of that investment has been clear - reducing costs for families, improving accessibility, supporting providers, increasing capacity and improving pay and conditions for educators and school-aged childcare practitioners. Budget 2026 further demonstrated that commitment, allocating almost €1.5 billion to early learning and childcare. This is a 12% increase on the previous year and a remarkable contrast to the €260 million investment just one decade ago.

We should not underestimate the significance of these investments. They are delivering real benefits for families throughout the country. Through the Government’s phase 2 reforms under Shaping the Future, we are pursuing long-term challenges to ensure childcare becomes even more affordable, accessible and sustainable. These reforms include a commitment to reduce parental fees to a maximum of €200 per month over the lifetime of this Government; strengthen supply-side funding for providers; improve pay and conditions for staff; and increase childcare capacity through both existing services and new State-led provision where gaps exist. Importantly, these reforms are informed by extensive consultation with parents, providers, educators and stakeholders. The objective is to develop a childcare system that works for everyone, including children, families, workers and providers.

The progress already achieved is substantial. This year alone, approximately 277,000 children will benefit from the national childcare scheme subsidies. More than 105,000 children will access free preschool education through the early childhood care and education programme, ECCE, while up to 9,000 children with disabilities will receive support through the access and inclusion model. Additional investment is being targeted towards disadvantaged children through the Equal Start initiative.

One of the most significant developments has been the introduction and expansion of core funding. Core funding has grown by 86% since its introduction and currently stands at over €482 million. More than 4,600 childcare providers are participating in this scheme, representing over 93% of eligible services. In return for this support, providers agree to fee controls, including fee freezes and caps, thus providing certainty and protection for families facing the cost of childcare.

For parents, the results are tangible. Average childcare fees are now 36% lower than in 2022. For a typical full-day childcare place, the maximum weekly fee has fallen significantly, delivering savings of more than €600 annually for many families. One quarter of families are already paying less than the Government’s target maximum fee of €200 per month. Targeted measures also have ensured that support reaches those who need it most. Low-income and lone-parent families have seen childcare costs fall dramatically as a proportion of income. Income thresholds have been increased to ensure more families qualify for higher subsidy levels. Additional supports for families with multiple children have reduced accessible income calculations and enabled more households to access greater assistance. These measures help to ease financial pressure at a time when many families continue to face broader cost-of-living challenges.

Of course, affordability is only one part of the challenge. Families must be able to access childcare places when and where they need them. The Government recognises the concern that exists with childcare capacity. However, the evidence shows positive momentum. The number of registered childcare services is increasing. Service closures are declining and enrolments increased by 25% between 2022 and 2025, despite the population of children under the age of five declining by 12% over the same period. There was also a net increase in providers in 2025 and we are seeing significant growth in the workforce. More than 42,000 people now work in the sector, representing growth of over one third since 2022. Qualification levels continue to rise, reflecting a more professional, skilled and supported workforce.

Through core funding and successive employment regulation orders, significant resources have been directed towards improving pay and conditions. The latest employment regulation order delivered an average pay increase of 10% for over two thirds of workers, while further increases are proposed for 2026. These improvements are essential because high-quality childcare depends on attracting and retaining highly skilled educators. The role of early years educators is invaluable. They support children in their learning, development and well-being during some of the most formative years of life. The Government must continue to support the professionalisation of the sector and the implementation of the objectives contained in the Nurturing Skills plan.

I acknowledge the important contribution of childminders across the country. Childminders provide an essential service for many families and communities. The new framework has been developed following consultation with the sector. It aims to strike the right balance by ensuring standards while recognising the unique nature of home-based childcare. Ongoing review and consultation will ensure these arrangements continue to work effectively.

Another important development is the State’s direct involvement in childcare provision for the first time. Supported by €135 million in capital funding, the State is building and acquiring childcare facilities with the aim of creating up to 800 new places in 2026. This is a significant policy shift that will help to address gaps in capacity, particularly in areas where private provision alone has not been sufficient.

The first site in Shanganagh Castle in Dublin has already been secured and is expected to open later this year.

This motion is balanced and realistic. It recognises that many families still face significant childcare costs but it also acknowledges that demand remains greater than supply in some parts of the country, particularly for younger children. It accepts that recruitment and retention remain challenges in a highly competitive labour market. It recognises, importantly, the substantial progress that has been made and the clear direction of travel.

The motion calls for affordable, accessible, and high-quality childcare for all families; further reductions in childcare fees in budget 2027; continued investment in childcare capacity, including State-owned facilities, where there is unmet need; greater co-location of childcare facilities with new schools; and continued support for recruitment, retention and professional development in the workforce.

Beyond the figures, funding allocation and policy reforms, we should remind ourselves why this matters so much. Childcare is not simply a service; it is an investment in our children, our families, our communities , our economy and our future. When families can access affordable, high-quality childcare, parents have greater opportunities to participate in the workforce, if they so choose, to pursue education, if they so choose, and to build financial security for their families.

I welcome to the Public Gallery the members of the European Committee of the Regions. We hope they have been enjoying their visit to Leinster House. This group is an advisory body to the EU and they are guests of the Department of housing. They have joined us for a debate on a motion relating to childcare. The Minister for Children, Disability and Equality, Deputy Foley, has also joined us for the debate.

I also welcome the delegation. I took the opportunity in the House yesterday to mention the important work the Committee of the Regions does and the fact it had the bureau in Mullingar yesterday. I also congratulated the leader of the Irish delegation, Gillian Coughlan, on being the incoming leader of the Renew group. It is the first time an Irish councillor has taken this position. It is great to see Gillian. I hope all our guests have an excellent evening and a really good trip.

I thank the Minister for being here. It gives me great pride to second the motion. There was a myriad of topics we, as a Fianna Fáil group, could have taken for our first Private Members' business after recess but we agreed collectively this was one of the main topics that impacted so many people in the areas we live in. Weekly, if not daily, we have people contacting us, particularly in developing areas, on childcare and its importance. The motion refers to affordable, accessible and high-quality childcare and to the need to support workers in the childcare system. We really depend on them. The motion is strong on continued professional development for them. For childcare to work, it has to work for everybody. It has to work for the families, for the proprietors and operators of the physical facilities and for those working in the system. If we did not have proper childcare, how would many people who work in this building come here? Think of all the wonderful people who help organise our days as Members of the House. It is really important.

The Minister has done a lot of work and a lot of investment has gone in. We are on a pathway to reducing the cost but having the physical places is every bit as important, as is supporting childminders in the home. I was very struck recently at a meeting at quite a large employment facility in Mayo, where 300 people worked, that it was the first issue the employers brought up with us as a delegation. The Minister, Deputy Chambers, was there. They faced a challenge as employers in getting women to come back into the workforce after their maternity leave. There was a real problem in accessing childcare. We need to look at it from the employers' point of view too. They want to support those who need to avail of it.

The Minister is very welcome to the House. I am glad to make an opening contribution and I want to acknowledge that State investment in early learning and childcare has more than doubled, with approximately €1.5 billion in 2026. Budget 2026 provided €1.48 billion for early learning and childcare, supporting the national childcare scheme, ECCE, the access and inclusion model and core funding.

Childcare goes beyond crèche- or centre-based childcare provisions. I agree with Senator O'Loughlin that it is also the after-schools and childminders. The number of childminders has dwindled over the years. I do not wish to fly a kite in the House this evening but we need to double the tax incentive for childminders at home. We give them a tax incentive of €14,000 but we need to look way beyond that to get more childminders into provision of services. People have different working hours. There are flexible working hours and people on shift duties. The childminder provides a home from home and a flexible experience. Many of the childcare centres operate Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., but parents, including nurses and gardaí, need a lot of flexibility.

The Minister's portfolio includes disability as well. Could we support the centres in expanding the access and inclusion model, AIM? It has been phenomenal in its role of getting children accustomed to going to crèche and preparing them for the school experience. At the other end of it in after-schools, could we encourage providers to open their doors more so mums or dads might not have to choose to finish at 3 p.m. when a child finishes? If there was that flexibility, a parent could do the normal working day. The Minister is doing phenomenal work in the Department. This is a brief she takes very seriously. She works closely with the sector on it. We need to look beyond centre-based childcare, focus on childminders and think about how we could expand AIM.

Cuirim fáilte mhór roimh an Aire agus í anseo don díospóireacht seo. I am delighted to make my small contribution to this debate, which is timely and valuable. Notwithstanding the fact we have a beautiful country and have so many assets in our beauty and in our resources, we sometimes overlook the fact that probably one of the greatest resources we have - this will come as no surprise to anyone, particularly those of us who served in education - is our young people, our children. They tangibly and unquestionably are the future, the well-being and the welfare of our country.

When we talk about childcare, we are talking about a vast number of young people who are being looked after by the childcare industry, which does invaluable work on behalf of parents or guardians who are out at work or unable to look after children. I want to sing a little tune for the, according to 2022 CSO figures, roughly 100,000 totally unpaid child carers. Mostly, these are grandparents who look after children without any financial reward or tax consideration. Many of them would completely eschew the idea of payment for their work. It is a reciprocal and symbiotic thing. These people get a huge amount back through being closer to their grandchildren as they grow from babyhood to toddler stages.

These grandparents absolutely rejoice in seeing all those stages. We have an expression that "Eaten bread is soon forgotten" but in the case of the input of grandparents or those unpaid carers, it is not so much eaten bread that is soon forgotten but eaten bread that is never remembered at all. I do not think I have ever heard any of us politicians publicly stand up and validate the work that is done. Maybe I have missed it but I do not believe I have ever heard a Minister, the Taoiseach or the Tánaiste celebrate and validate in some public way the work that these people do. It should be not just once but should be done regularly. If we extrapolate from the CSO figures, on a replacement value alone it probably would cost €5 billion to €6 billion. On the overheads measurement, it would be in the order of getting closer to €20 billion. It is phenomenal money that we are getting free of charge. It is done out of love and care. We should have some way of endorsing and validating the work done by these lovely people - grandparents in the main - and I ask the Minister to give serious thought to it with her Cabinet colleagues and maybe devise some scheme or some little word of recognition for those people who give so much to the State out of love.

The Minister is very welcome here this evening. I welcome the opportunity to speak on childcare. I commend my Government colleagues on bringing this motion to the House today because we have to be fair about where we are right now. There has been real progress. There has been record investment. The national childcare scheme has reduced costs for families. Average out-of-pocket childcare costs are down 36% since 2022. Budget 2026 provided almost €1.5 billion for early learning and childcare while core funding for 2026-27 has increased to a record €482 million. That is progress and we should acknowledge it but we also must acknowledge that we are not there yet. The programme for Government has committed us to progressively reducing the cost of childcare to €200 per month per child. We need to deliver on that commitment.

I wish to particularly acknowledge my colleague, Deputy Emer Currie, who has done a huge amount of work on childcare. Deputy Currie has consistently raised affordability but importantly, she has also focused on the other side of the problem, which is availability. We can increase subsidies and reduce costs but a subsidy is not much good to a parent if they cannot find a childcare place in the first place. That is still the reality for too many families. This motion recognises that demand remains higher than supply in certain parts of the country, particularly for younger children. We also have a challenge around staffing. Again, there has been progress there. The early years workforce has grown to more than 42,000 people. The employment regulation order delivered an average pay increase of 10% to more than two thirds of that workforce.

However, there is one figure from the Minister, Deputy Foley, that stood out to me. In the context of budget 2026, the Minister stated that improving recruitment and retention could help unlock approximately 17,000 existing childcare places that cannot currently be filled because of staff shortages. That is a remarkable figure. It tells us that this is not simply about building more childcare facilities. In some cases, the capacity is already there, but we do not have the people to staff it. At the same time, demand continues to grow. More than 286,000 children are expected to benefit from the national childcare scheme this year, which is approximately 35,000 more than last year. Now, we are moving into another important phase. The Government has committed €135 million to directly build and acquire childcare facilities for the first time. The initial State-led facilities are intended to provide more than 100 places each with thousands of additional places planned over the coming years. The motion before us recognises this major policy change, but it raises a question. Do we have a workforce plan capable of producing, and more importantly, retaining enough qualified early years educators to staff all these additional places?

An issue that I have repeatedly raised regarding plans in this House is that we cannot plan buildings today and then start thinking about the staff skills needed tomorrow. The workforce plan must go together with the capital plan. We have training routes available. The programme for Government commits us to removing barriers to training and introducing an earn-and-learn apprenticeship model where people can work in childcare while gaining qualifications and progressing their career. I would like to see more movement on that. If we are serious about creating all these additional childcare places, we need to make sure that we are training enough people, attracting them into the sector and giving them a reason to stay. When this motion references State investment in areas of unmet need, particularly in rural areas, the Minister will not be surprised about me mentioning Boyle, County Roscommon. Multiple representatives have made for the Boyle Community Childcare Committee and the work that they have done in the past. They did not simply say there was a problem; they did the work. They commissioned a detailed childcare needs analysis. They gathered the evidence that clearly demonstrated the shortage of childcare in Boyle and the surrounding area. In a break from norm, I acknowledge Deputy Claire Kerrane, who has consistently advocated for additional childcare provision in Boyle. This also has been a real cross-party effort locally. I recognise Deputy Martin Daly, the Minister of State, Deputy Frankie Feighan and Councillors Liam Callaghan and Sean Moylan, who have all highlighted the need and worked to move this project forward.

There is an important point here. We can all regularly call publicly for Government intervention. That is part of politics, and those calls are important. Ultimately, if want to see something delivered, we must bring that immediate need directly into the Government, put the evidence on the table and make sure that the people making the decisions understand the urgency of it. That is why I particularly wish to acknowledge the Minister, Deputy Chambers. He came to Boyle. He met Deputy Daly and me. We sat in the family resource centre in Boyle. We listened to the community representatives - the people involved - and heard directly about the difficulties that families are facing. The case for Boyle has been raised by us all at the highest level in Government. I acknowledge the Taoiseach and Tánaiste for listening and understanding why this is so important for Boyle and north Roscommon. I acknowledge the Minister for her engagement on this particular issue. Last week when the Dáil returned, Deputy Kerrane raised the issue of Boyle with the Minister. The Minister's response indicated that an announcement on locations for the State-led childcare facility is due shortly. I am certainly not going to pre-empt any announcement on that. Boyle has made the case. The evidence is there. The need is there. The community has done the work. The Government now has the mechanism to respond to that. For the first time, the State is directly building and acquiring childcare facilities in areas where the existing system has not been able to meet demand.

I also strongly support the point of colocation childcare, which is mentioned in this motion. Councillor Caroline Brady in Lucan recently raised this with me and highlighted the issue regarding Aderrig in Adamstown near Lucan. Senator Curley is there as well. We sit on the education committee. If we are building these schools, colocation is a very important factor. I have run out of time. I met a nurse in Roscommon on Monday. The nurse was doing a very important job in a busy healthcare facility. When she saw me coming through the door, she mentioned the lack of childcare facilities and the decision that she has to make in the next three months of whether to continue in her important and necessary role or to look after her kids because of the lack of that facility. I will leave the Minister with that thought.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion.

Childcare is extremely important. Early years and school-aged childcare are fundamental to a child's development, to family well-being and to the social and economic life of our society. It needs to be a service that is accessible, affordable, sustainable and of the highest quality. There are a number of different points that deal with different issues here. I will look at affordability first. There is a commitment in the programme for Government to reduce the cost of childcare to €200 a month. I think Sinn Féin was the first party to bring forward this proposal prior to the most recent election. This was also committed to by the Government parties, which is very welcome, but we have not got to that point yet and we need to. I recognise that some families are only paying that or less but many families are paying a lot more.

It can be like a second mortgage for them, so that needs to be addressed first.

Affordability is one thing, but availability is another. If you cannot avail of a place, the amount of money does not matter. We have up to 46,000 children under the age of three waiting for a place. I have had a mother in tears on the phone to my office because she could not get a childcare place for her child and could not return to work. I was talking to another woman who was a special needs teacher who, when her last child was born, ended up giving up her job for three years. Her child was three before she could access a childcare place and she is now trying to return to work, but there are issues there because she is at a financial loss; she has been out of work for a few years. You also lose experience and gaining seniority in your workplace. Again, it is mostly women this affects. I am not saying it is all women, but it is mostly women.

The main issue affecting availability is recruitment and retention. We need to see much better pay for our early years educators because many of them are highly qualified with level 7 or 8 degrees, yet they are getting barely above the minimum wage. I welcome the increase announced in the minimum rates of pay for educators. However, it is not good enough that some employers have delayed this for months. We need to see an improvement in and a more stable level of pay because people who are working in this sector are leaving it to go into jobs as SNAs or teachers because of better pay and better conditions, as well as more job security which we all need in this day and age with the cost of living and difficulties in acquiring a mortgage to obtain housing.

We also need to see better conditions for our early school educators. Continuous professional development, CPD, is so important. Many of our educators have to access that CPD in their own time or at their own cost. I recognise the provisions included within core funding but many providers do not recognise that as such and use it for general administration time, so staff do not see it. It should not be an additional or optional element of the system. I really think it benefits our children if our staff within that sector receive continuous professional development on an ongoing basis, which leads to a much better quality service for all our children.

I would also love to get an update on the progress of the development of the State-led services. It says in the motion that "the State is directly building and acquiring childcare facilities for the first time", which I welcome. It was also announced in last year's budget, so I would like to know where those facilities are. How many facilities have been built or acquired, and when will they be operational? How many children will be facilitated in those facilities?

The motion also mentions "the prioritisation of co-location for all new school building projects, with the primary school and childcare facility located on the one campus". I think that makes absolute sense and would lead to better communication and co-operation between the two sectors, which is not happening at the moment. Again, it is something we need to be looking at. In fact, there needs to be a plan for the future of childcare. I met with Early Childhood Ireland earlier today and there is a quote on the back of their literature which says, "If you want to understand the future of a country, do not start in its universities. Start in its kindergartens, creches and nurseries." That is very important. Our education needs to start there and it needs to be of quality and properly supported.

I would really like to see a completely State-led service, similar to our primary school system where the State owns the buildings, pays the educators and ensures there is a quality service provided to our children. If our children were going into primary school and teachers were leaving every second week because they were moving to a different sector due to pay and conditions, there would be uproar. We need the same situation within our early education sector so that our children receive the education on a continuous basis from someone they are familiar with.

After-school care is also very important, but the ratio for after-school care is 1:12. We have an increased number of children with additional needs. They are maybe coming from a special class in a primary school where it is a ratio of one teacher and two SNAs to six children. They are then expected to go into a setting where there is only one person to 12 children. I know that when the Minister visited the community crèche in my locality last year, this was raised with her at the time. There was a parent there who had twins who were in the local school in a special class and she needed after-school care. The facility was reluctant to take the twins, not because it did not want to help, but because it felt it could not keep them safe with that ratio. I have spoken to other providers who feel the exact same. This is an issue that needs to be addressed. We have AIMs but we do not have anything in the after-school facilities.

Before I call the Minister to speak, I take this opportunity to welcome to the Chamber the UCD political science undergraduates from Spain and South Africa, who are guests of Deputy James O'Connor this evening. They are very welcome. They have joined us for an important debate on a motion on childcare, and the Minister for children is about to speak.

I join in welcoming Deputy O'Connor's guests. I hope they find the debate beneficial in what we are seeking to find a pathway forward through, which is very important. It is about putting children at the centre of the country and the services we provide for them.

I sincerely welcome the opportunity to speak with the House today on this very important motion. I thank my Fianna Fáil colleagues for putting forward this motion. I also thank everybody here in the Chamber who has contributed, of all persuasions and none, because this is something we share. We share a positivity and an absolute determination to deliver to the very best of our ability for young people. I have always said that if we can get it right for children, then we ultimately get it right for society. I appreciate that shared objective here in the House.

The motion, as outlined, reflects a clear ambition I believe is shared among us all, which is that every child should have the opportunity to access high-quality early learning and childcare, and that every family should be able to afford those services. In addition, those who work in the sector should be valued and supported in the vital role they play in children's lives.

The motion also recognises a very important reality. While there remain significant challenges across the sector, Ireland has made substantial progress in recent years. The debate we are having today is no longer about whether the State should play a major role in supporting early learning and childcare. That question has been answered very clearly and resolutely. However, the challenge now is how we continue to build, strengthen and improve the system that has emerged through unprecedented investment and reform in recent years.

The foundation for that programme has been sustained Government investment. In recent years, public investment in early learning and childcare has increased to levels that would have been unimaginable just a decade ago. Annual expenditure now exceeds €1.5 billion, reflecting a clear commitment by the Government to transform the sector and recognise early learning and childcare as an essential public service. This investment has been driven by a clear understanding of the benefits for every individual child, their parents and guardians, our society and our economy. High-quality early learning and childcare supports a child’s development, assists parents to participate in employment and education, contributes to social inclusion and strengthens the economic and social fabric of communities throughout the country. This has all been articulated already by the speakers at this point. Importantly, this investment has not been confined to any single programme or initiative. Rather, it has supported a strategic and integrated programme of reform which is improving affordability, accessibility, inclusion, quality and sustainability across the entire sector.

The phase 1 report on Shaping the Future: The Early Years Action Plan sets out measures to achieve key programme for Government commitments on the affordability, quality and accessibility of early learning and care and school-age childcare. Two of the main objectives of Shaping the Future are to reduce parental fees to a maximum of €200 per month over the lifetime of this Government and to increase the supply of places. This would strengthen funding to support services’ sustainability and staff wages, while also introducing State-led facilities to complement other measures to increase capacity. The action plan appoints a phased approach that enables action to be taken in 2026 while allowing adequate time for a broad public consultation and analysis on longer-term actions. The consultation process has been taking place throughout this year and will inform phase 2 of Shaping the Future. Phase 2 will be published this year and will set out actions to be undertaken from 2027 through to 2029.

We have an action plan, and the final part of the consultation for that plan took place today. It was a summit gathering, if you like, of parents, providers, educators and children.

We invited them to come to a town-hall type meeting to discuss their vision and their aspirations for the future. That is on the back of the previous consultations that have taken place throughout the year. More than 11,700 parents engaged in a public consultation. There was engagement with children, who, through art form, gave their thoughts and their views on the future of education. There was engagement with the providers. It has been a long-standing engagement for a year and that will inform the second and final phase of Shaping the Future.

A key pillar of Government policy has been to improve affordability and access for families through the national childcare scheme and the early childhood care and education, ECCE, programme. Through a series of enhancements, substantial reductions in out-of-pocket costs have been delivered for many families. Parents and guardians of 277,000 children throughout the country are benefiting from increased national childcare scheme subsidies in 2026. The scheme continues to support participation in employment, education and training while helping families manage the cost-of-living pressures that many households have experienced in recent years. That point about the importance of ensuring there are opportunities to support people who need or wish to go out to work has been made by all of the Senators here.

These improvements matter because early learning and childcare costs have a direct impact on family decisions. They influence, as we said, whether parents, in particular, as has been referenced, mothers, can return to or remain in work, whether they must reduce, maintain or increase working hours and whether they can pursue education and training opportunities. By reducing childcare costs, we are not only supporting families financially but also creating opportunities that strengthen participation in society and the economy, as Senator O'Loughlin referenced quite significantly.

Alongside the national childcare scheme, the ECCE programme continues to provide universal access to high-quality preschool education. This year, over 105,000 children will benefit from two years of the ECCE programme participation, giving them opportunities to develop key social, emotional and learning skills through a critical stage of their development. The programme is one of the most successful social investments made by the State, ensuring that all children, regardless of their background, have access to high-quality early learning experiences before beginning primary school.

While considerable progress has been made through these programmes, the Government recognises that affordability remains an important issue for many families. That is why we remain committed to continuing the work of reducing costs and supporting participation while maintaining the sustainability and quality of services.

Alongside universal supports, the Government is also committed to ensuring that children who face disadvantage receive the support necessary to access and benefit from early learning and childcare opportunities. The award-winning access and inclusion model, AIM, is supporting up to 9,000 children with a disability to access the ECCE programme. AIM has now expanded beyond the ECCE programme, where ECCE children are benefiting from AIM support outside the ECCE programme hours, both in term and out.

The equal start model represents another important development in this regard. At its core, equal start reflects a commitment to ensuring that the benefits of early learning and childcare are available to all children, irrespective of background or circumstance. Equal start seeks to address those challenges that may be faced by families through targeted support and intervention, helping services to respond more effectively to disadvantage and ensuring that children who stand to benefit most from participation are supported to do so. In doing so, the equal start model supports not only inclusion but also equality of opportunity. It reflects a belief that every child deserves the chance to thrive and that early intervention can play a transformative role in children's lives.

Central to the success of the Government's reform programme has been the introduction of core funding. Core funding represents one of the most significant changes ever made to the funding model for the sector. Through this scheme, the State is providing direct and sustained support to providers in a way that strengthens their sustainability, supports affordability for families through fee management measures, and supports quality services through better terms, conditions and professional development for staff. Core funding has grown by 86% since its introduction to over €482 million in its fifth year and latest data shows over 4,600 providers, or more than 91%, are now participating in this fifth year of the scheme. For many providers, core funding has brought greater certainty and stability, enabling them to continue delivering services while responding to increasing costs and growing demand. It has also strengthened the partnership between the State and providers in delivering public policy objectives. The importance of core funding extends beyond financial sustainability. It has established the platform upon which the interconnected reforms of affordability, quality and workforce development are delivered.

No discussion of the future of the sector would be complete without recognising the absolute importance of the workforce. The quality of children's experiences within early learning and childcare settings is fundamentally linked to the dedication, professionalism and expertise of the excellent staff who work with them in settings right across the country. Early years educators, managers, school-age childcare practitioners, providers and childminders make an extraordinary contribution to the lives, and to the development and well-being of our children. Historically, the contribution made by the workforce was not always adequately recognised. The Government has, therefore, placed a significant emphasis on workplace development and professionalisation. Through the nurturing skills workforce plan and a range of workforce supports, significant progress has been made in strengthening qualifications, professional development opportunities and career pathways across the sector.

Moreover, the independent joint labour committee is now proposing increases of over 6% to the minimum rates of all roles in the sector. This is building on substantial progress made in pay through three consecutive employment regulation orders, EROs, in the last four years negotiated by the committee - all supported by the Government's core funding scheme. In fact, €45 million was made available this year specifically for the ERO and a further €45 million the previous year, comprising €90 million specifically made available to boost supports for the workforce. If these new rates of pay as outlined are commenced, the minimum hourly rate of pay for an early years educator will have increased from €10.50 to €16, with similar increases across other roles in the sector, including lead educators, deputy managers and managers.

The workforce remains central to every ambition we hold for the future of early learning and childcare. If we are to improve quality, increase capacity and expand access, we must continue to attract and retain talented professionals within the sector. I am committed to ensuring that we do that and support it going forward.

The motion also references one of the most significant challenges facing the sector, namely, capacity. While many families are successfully accessing services, there remain areas where demand exceeds supply and where additional places are required. That has been referenced here by the House. Population growth, demographic change and housing development have increased demand in many communities, thereby creating pressures that require careful planning and sustained investment. As new communities are being developed and as new schools and public facilities are planned, it is important that early learning and childcare services are considered from the outset. Families benefit when services are planned in an integrated way and when early learning and childcare forms part of the essential infrastructure of growing communities. The Government is committed to working across Departments and agencies to ensure that capacity expansion remains a central element of future policy development.

An important part of that future capacity will be delivered through childminders. Childminders have always played a valuable role in supporting families and providing flexible forms of early learning and childcare in communities throughout Ireland. Recognising this important contribution, the Government has undertaken significant work to support the development of the childminding sector. The national action plan for childminding is helping to bring greater recognition and support to childminders while creating pathways for participation in regulatory and support structures.

Notwithstanding the progress that has been made in all of the areas outlined, it is important to acknowledge, as always, that challenges remain. Affordability remains a concern for many families despite the improvements delivered through the recent subsidy increases. Workforce recruitment and retention continue to present difficulties for many services and capacity constraints remain evident in some communities. The Government neither underestimates these challenges nor wishes to suggest that there are simple solutions to complex issues. However, it is equally important that we recognise the progress achieved and the strong foundations that have been established. We now have a level of investment that would have been considered impossible only a few years ago. We have a long-term strategic framework through Shaping the Future, First 5 and Nurturing Skills. We have strengthened supports for families through the ECCE programme and the national childcare scheme, targeted disadvantage and inclusion through AIM and equal start, enhanced sustainability and workforce development through core funding and established a clear pathway for further development of capacity and the regulation of childminding. The task before us now is to build upon these achievements.

I, therefore, welcome the motion before the House. It recognises the progress that has been achieved, acknowledges the challenges and opportunities that remain and sets out a constructive direction for future reform and I am pleased to support its objectives. I look forward to continuing to work with colleagues across Government and across this House to strengthen early learning and childcare for children and families throughout Ireland. I am absolutely committed to prioritising further investment through the 2027 Estimates for that purpose.

Before we move to our next Seanadóir, I welcome the guests of Senator Joanne Collins to the Chamber: Karen Ronan, CEO of Galway Chamber; Cáit Noone, president of Galway Chamber; and Marilyn Gaughan Reddan of the board of the Chambers Ireland. They are very welcome to this important debate on childcare. I am sure they appreciate the promise the Minister was just making.

I am sharing time with Senator Nessa Cosgrove. I will let my colleague go first.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I thank the Fianna Fáil Senators for bringing the motion forward. I know how committed the Minister is to this area and to education in general. We have to welcome all of the positive developments we have seen in the early years sector but we must not exaggerate the positives at the expense of reality. On the ground, providers, educators and parents are still facing problems with accessibility, affordability and sustainability. As outlined in the motion and as everyone has brought up here today, early childhood provides an opportunity to shape and develop young minds and to support young families through the provision of excellent early years education. To achieve its potential, we need the early years and school-age care sector to be located in the communities in which children are living so that parents are not driving huge distances each day, adding to expensive commutes. That is what we are trying to address here. Care needs to be accessible.

While addressing the cost to parents is needed, the answer is not to just keep increasing NCS subsidies to parents. While I admit that this reduces fees, it is also puts more and more of the State's money into the pockets of chains owned by multinational multimillion and multibillion euro corporations. I have to raise this issue because, unfortunately, there is money to be made in childcare. Care needs to be affordable but the outsourcing of some of the State's responsibility to the private sector has delivered a sector that could be on the brink of collapse. I know that is not what the Minister intends with the work she is putting in. While small independent providers, both community and private, struggle to make ends meet, vast corporate chains are making vast profits.

The sector still struggles to attract educators and will continue to do so unless their qualifications and potential are recognised. While the recent employment regulation order agreement, which will see minimum rates of pay for graduate centre managers rise to €21.55, is to be welcomed, it is still a long away off the €29.38 per hour paid to newly qualified primary school teachers. Early Childhood Ireland has been calling for pay parity between national school teachers and graduate early years educators for over a year. It is time for the Government to put a date on pay parity for educators. It is the only way to attract graduates into a workforce that has historically suffered from exploitation.

Care needs to be sustainable. Without stabilising the workforce, sustainability and accessibility will continue to be problems for families as small community-based providers, both private and non-profit, are forced to close their doors. As a rural representative, I know this hits rural communities particularly hard. This is what I want to bring up. City and county childcare committees have played a crucial role in ensuring sustainability in the sector and are responsible for delivering Government policy. I have to ask the question: why are the CEOs of large corporate chains also sitting on the boards of certain childcare committees? That is not happening in my area. I want to make that very clear. However, they also sit on joint labour committee. Why should the CEOs of multimillion euro businesses owned by multimillion euro corporate funds be deciding the rates that low-paid early years educators are paid? We have to question this. I have to call it out. Who is delivering this Government policy and who is directing it? There is a clear conflict of interest at play in certain childcare committees in other parts of the country. The relevant authorities, including the Charities Regulator, need to examine this issue and the question of how long people can stay on boards. We need a trusted, functioning and State-delivered early years education sector. Like other branches of our education system, it should provide an excellent service that families can rely on. I know the Minister has looked into this but I urge her to look again. There is an influx of corporations within this sector. The governance of childcare committees should be looked at.

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I thank the Fianna Fáil Senators for using their Private Members' time to bring forward this important motion. The motion recognises the distance we have come since 2020 under the Minister's predecessor, my colleague Deputy Roderic O'Gorman who did incredible work. We want to see that same trajectory continue. I recognise the comments made by my colleague here. We have gone some distance towards affordability, professional development and retention of staff but, as the Minister knows, significant challenges remain, particularly in a country that is at full employment, where many graduates are pulled into different areas of employment.

While core funding was welcomed at the time, it did not work for all providers. I refer to some of the small providers in particular. It is important that be recognised. How the Minister moves forward with the next phase of the plan will be really important. We also recognise the importance of the foundations for education and lifelong learning for children and young people and for their well-being. This is the most vital sector. Pay parity is the critical issue that Early Childhood Ireland has raised with us as it seeks public sector pay and conditions in line with teachers. That would mark a significant turning point in retention. The graduate premium should be doubled to allow providers to retain qualified staff. There has not been an increase there. That is another important issue.

I will also raise with the Minister the issue of funding for AIM support. This is vital for all settings. It currently stands at €18 per hour, €15 of which goes on pay, leaving €3 to cover PAYE and holidays. It therefore unfortunately does not cover the full cost. That needs be addressed as a matter of urgency.

My wife, Jennie, works in the sector. I will give a shout-out to First Steps Montessori in Kilkenny and to Leanne and all of the staff there. Jennie loves her work. She loves working with the children. Every year, a new intake comes in and she comes home so excited to speak about the children who are coming into her care. She is then sad at the end of the year when they are finishing up. I have been on the boards of voluntary community-based providers of different types in Kilkenny over the past 20 years. I have seen the changes. I have seen the lows and I have seen the hope that has come into the sector in recent years. I hope the Minister can continue on this trajectory for the staff, the people who work in early childhood education, and also for the children, because it is the most vital start they will have in life.

I thank the Fianna Fáil Senators for bringing forward this topic. Like many others, we are navigating another start of term and all of the paperwork that goes with that. There is nothing more important than childcare, what it does and the foundation it provides for our children.

I want to highlight some of the choices we still have and the potential new models we could use. The Minister has said that the question is no longer whether the State should be playing a major role in supporting early learning and childcare but how it should do so. Within the motion, there are really concrete measures that look for that more active State involvement. One of the calls relates to co-location with our educational infrastructure, including our primary school infrastructure, and the building or purchasing of State-owned facilities. Publicly delivered and developed childcare where it is needed, particularly in areas of high-density and rural areas, is part of it. That is the kind of thing we mean when we talk about the role of the State in delivering the foundations for our children through early years education, which is also absolutely crucial social infrastructure.

While I am sure the Minister is well aware of them, I will highlight and draw the Minister's attention to some of the proposals put forward by SIPTU in its roadmap. I hosted a SIPTU event on its roadmap for early years affordability before the summer. As the Minister will be aware, it has put forward proposals that aim to address the fact that, even with the schemes we have, which are very welcome, there can be a little bit of a gap. Things can fall between the cracks. An administrative burden can also fall on families and facilities in managing these things. Like many of us, I have navigated this system myself, determining which hours fall under the ECCE scheme, which fall under the different other programmes, the number of hours for which the child is enrolled and at which times of the day. The State is effectively giving a massive subsidy to make childcare possible.

What SIPTU has put forward is the idea that it may take a different form. If we look at the actual breakdown of expenditure on provision of childcare, 69% is employee compensation. Rather than the plethora of schemes and subsidies that individual families have to navigate their access to and facilities, SIPTU put forward that we could look to the State taking on that part of the piece. SIPTU estimates that if the State was delivering and managing the employment payments in crèches, that would bring crèche fees down to €255 per week. We would be within reach of the goal of €200 that we have all heard about, which is referenced in the motion. While that would be an increase in what the State is currently spending, it would not necessarily be an insurmountable increase. They point to this scheme as an idea of almost both simplifying and delivering affordability, with affordability as the first goal or benefit, but with the secondary benefit of supporting the other agenda the Minister spoke out in terms of professionalisation and supporting consistency of employment and opportunities for progress in the sector.

If the State were to be effectively the payroll manager, it would move to a point in terms of retention, which we know is a massive issue. Anybody knows about the turnover of staff that is happening in many crèches, which is so difficult and often kind of distressing because the relationships that are formed are so fundamental with caregivers. It is kind of a 1:2 or 1:3 relationship at that point. We need to have a situation where anybody working in the childcare sector knows that they are going to be paid properly by the State, that there will be progression opportunities, that they will be paid the same whether they are working in an area of disadvantage or working in an area of comparative advantage and that there will be an equality of payment and a core payment of some sort. I appreciate the important work of the EROs and the attempts to raise the bar and raise the standards, but this may be an opportunity to have the State lead on that. I am just putting that out there. It is SIPTU's roadmap. It is an interesting proposal. It is great that we have all come to certain collective views in relation to the importance of a role for the State, the importance of this being an area of public investment, the importance of this idea being a foundation and the idea of affordability and decent pay and conditions being crucial to the delivery of that. SIPTU's model is something that contributes to those shared goals and should be considered. I urge the Minister to take it on board.

Senators Comyn and Ryan are sharing time. Is that agreed? Agreed.

I thank the Minister for coming to address what is one of the most vital and urgent issues we have. I welcome the motion and support it wholeheartedly. As one of my colleagues said, childcare is not simply a service we provide to parents; it is what allows people to work. It allows people to build careers and gives children a strong start in life to flourish.

For generations of women in particular, it has often determined whether they could stay in the workplace. I know that because I was one of those women. When my two children were very small, I had to make a conscious decision to have two children because I knew if I had more, keeping the career I worked so hard to build would become almost impossible. The childcare bill I paid every month, like many others, was higher than my mortgage. I recall earning that salary and watching such a huge portion of it disappearing every month on childcare. Peter Pan Crèche in Drogheda was worth every penny. The staff were amazing, but I also know what that childcare gave me. It gave me the ability to keep working and progressing. It gave me so many opportunities and the ability to have a career while being a mother. Ultimately, it helped me to get where I am today, standing in the Chamber with the privilege and honour of using my voice to fight for other families who are trying to do exactly the same thing.

When we talk about childcare policy, we should not ever forget that there is human story behind every single place. I am thinking of some of the mums I have spoken to in Louth and whether they are going back to work. They are wondering whether they can go back to work and whether it makes financial sense, while the dads are rearranging shifts because the crèche cannot offer it the hours they need. There is also the lone parent who simply cannot afford to take a job in the first place without reliable childcare or even the parents who are currently working but whose children should have the opportunity to benefit from early learning, interaction and care. That is why childcare can only be seen as something that allows parents to go to work. It is part of the fabric of the infrastructure of a modern society.

Most importantly, it should be about choice. If a parent chooses to return to work, childcare should be available and affordable. If a parent is studying, retraining, or looking for work, or simply needs support, it should be available, if a family chooses not to use formal childcare, that should be their choice as well. Our job is not to tell families how to raise their children. Our job, ultimately, is to make sure that a lack of affordable childcare does not make that decision for them.

We have made huge progress, as we have heard. Investment has increased substantially. Parents' costs have fallen and we are investing directly and heavily in additional capacity. As everyone in this Chamber knows, however, the job is certainly not finished. We all hear about families throughout the country desperately searching for places. Parents are still looking at childcare costs and wondering how the sums can simply add up. There are still excellent early years educators whom we need to recruit, retain and properly value. Let us be honest: we know that they are not just babysitters; they are skilled professionals who are caring for our children during some of the most formative years of their lives.

The ambition in this motion is really clear. We must continue reducing costs and increasing quality places and move toward a maximum childcare cost of €200 a month per child during the lifetime of the Government. I do not want another generation of women sitting at kitchen tables calculating whether they can afford to go back to work or deciding how many children they can afford to have, depending on childcare. It simply might not add up. I do not want any other parent locked out of work or education opportunities because there are no childcare spaces available for them. I was fortunate in that I had childcare. It was painfully expensive, but it allowed me to continue the career that I love. We hear about families desperately searching for places. We have to make sure, for generations of women to come, and now, that there is affordable, quality and available childcare for all. I wholeheartedly support this motion.

I too would like to echo the comments of Senator Comyn and many of the comments made across the House during the debate. I wish to thank the Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Higgins, for their time and all the work they are doing in this area. We have heard a comprehensive address this evening from the Minister of the ongoing investment into the sector and the significant and ongoing work in the Department. I wanted to acknowledge that work and to wish them well with the continued work.

I would like to report from Limerick that while parents are telling me that costs have fallen when I am on the doors every week, the challenge remains around capacity. While it is not the second mortgage that it may have been at the start of my childcare journey, it is a real and significant challenge to secure spaces. Many working mothers or parents who need that additional support in their homes are reporting that it has been multiple years that they may have to wait to secure a spot in Limerick and the mid-west area. I thank the Minister for her ongoing work in the area. I wish her well with this. I acknowledge the progress that has been made and the ambition within the Department.

I cannot fault anything in the motion. It is good that we continue to speak about the issue.

I am shocked to hear that.

Yes, I know - shock, horror. It is not like me to stand up and not give out about something, but there is a twist near the end. We need to keep talking about childcare because there are still issues. We can keep working and working but there will always be. If it is not the affordable side, it will be the accessibility side. I can see it from all sides. I went through the childcare system with my own children. Fourteen years ago, I had to leave my job because I could no longer afford it. What I had to pay for my kids in childcare went above my salary. When I finally got to the point where they were old enough that the cost came down, I could not get a place.

There is always going to be an issue for a family out there anyway. Regardless of whether we can get the cost down to what we want it to be, some families still probably will not be able to afford it. There are always going to be issues. However, the issue that is most pressing is definitely the accessibility issue at the moment. I think it comes down to the recruiting and retention of childcare workers. You have a level 8 childcare worker who does four years in college and then they see primary school teachers who are getting way above their salary. I think a primary school teacher probably comes out with about €40 an hour for the hours they work and early years educators on a level 8 come out with €17.50 or €18. There is a huge disparity. We can see why childcare workers after their level 8 are going to go for another year, do their Hibernia year and go into primary school teaching.

We are losing childcare workers hand over fist. I am also the chairperson of a community-run crèche and the childcare workers in that crèche are paid over the minimum wage. They have their pensions. They have health insurance. They get their bonuses for not ringing in sick. They have all these little things. They get Christmas nights out. They get their end-of-summer party. That is all to keep the morale up. That is what is needed.

For too long they have been treated like babysitters when they are not babysitters. They do such amazing work. We could not be here without them. People could not go to work without them, and we know the kids are being taken care of because they are so well qualified at what they do. It is not like 20 years ago when there were no qualifications and you put your child into what was called "playschool", and they were being minded by somebody down the road. There are qualifications at play here. They do an awful lot of work, and they are forever upskilling. We need to look at their pay and pay scale for morale and retention. Primary school education is competing against early years educators and I do not think there is proper parity when it comes to it. Primary school teachers are getting their summer off, Christmas off and they are getting mid-term breaks while early years educators are on half the wage and do not get any of that. We do need to make it more competitive or more palatable for them to go into that. They go into it for the love of it. They do not go in because it is easy. When you see them doing four years at college there is a love behind it.

The only other critique I have is the national childcare scheme, NCS, hours. The way the NCS hours are done is penalising parents if they collect their children early because the childcare facility has to log their hours and if someone collects their child early, they do not get those NCS hours. The childcare facility is not going to take that hit. It is put on the parents. There are parents sitting outside crèches for an hour because they cannot go in yet because they are going to get charged if they go in and collect their child.

A parent hanging around for an hour outside could be collecting the child early. That childcare facility could close an hour earlier if the kids go home an hour earlier and give the staff an extra hour off. There is a ripple effect to it. That definitely needs to be looked at. I do not think anybody, whether it is the facility or the parent, should be penalised for a child going home early. A child going home early is a really good thing. They get to spend more time with their parents. They get more time outside at home, playing XBOX or whatever it is they want to do. They are not being left there.

It is good to see the Minister of State in Seanad Éireann again. I want to commend our Fianna Fáil colleagues on putting a very important motion before us this evening. It is important to recognise that while there are obviously policy differences between different parties and different Members of the Seanad, there is no doubt in my mind that childcare, looking after and supporting young children, and making sure they are looked after is an issue that is above party politics. Really it is about ensuring that those children, who have to be at the heart of the conversation, have access in their local area to a childcare facility or childminder and that the families those children are part of are able to get out and get back into the workforce. It is really important that when we have these conversations, we keep that to the very forefront.

I am going to make a number of brief points because quite a lot of this issue has already been well covered. Specifically, it is important to recognise the contribution that childminders make right across the country. Perhaps it is more of a rural thing than urban thing. It is important that in the upcoming budget, we see additional supports to support childminders themselves. Quite a lot of the conversation tends to revolve around large crèche facilities, but there is a large cohort of people who look after children in their own homes. It is important that we support them to do that while not over-regulating them to the point that they decide it is not worth getting into it the following year.

My second point is around the whole area of the ECCE scheme and how the ECCE scheme is being rolled out. It is quite a good model, but it could probably be extended. There are quite a lot of children who are in the ECCE scheme for the two years but really are in a crèche early. In my area of Wexford, one of the biggest challenges people come to me with is access to a crèche for very young children. If their mother wants to go back to work after six months or a year, can they actually find a childcare space? There would be one when that child turns two or two and a half, but there is not one when they are six months old or up to two years old. Perhaps there is an opportunity in the ECCE scheme to try to address that if we want to support mothers in particular to get back to work. It is important to acknowledge it is mothers in this entire conversation. It tends to be the mother who takes time off work to look after the children. That is the lived reality of so many women up and down the country. If we want to support them, maybe the ECCE scheme is a good working model to do that.

The third and final point I want to make about this is that I have been a believer for quite a long time in the importance of a State-led model. We have had State-provided primary education for quite a long time and State-provided secondary education. I think we are ultimately going to have to make a giant leap forward beyond even what is envisaged in the programme for Government towards a State-provided model of childcare. Ultimately, that is where this entire thing is going. While there will always be a role for private providers, community providers and childminders, I think the State needs to take greater involvement in the sector as a whole.

I thank the Minister of State for coming in this evening. I acknowledge the great work done by her and the Minister, Deputy Foley. I am a great believer in parental choice. I believe that if parents want to go out to work, they should be able to. If one of them wants to stay at home, they should be in a position to do that. If one of them wants to go onto further education, they should be in a position to do that. It is a sad state of affairs if childcare is preventing them from making a choice that suits them. I would like to thank everyone for their contributions here this evening. Everyone made very valid points and, going forward, there is a lot done, a lot more to do, to coin our own phrase.

Childcare is so important. These children are our future so it is important that in their formative years they are well looked after and they gain confidence and a zest for life and are given every opportunity. I ask the Minister of State to make sure that in the upcoming budget there will be big changes in our childcare system.

When is it proposed to sit again?

At 9.30 a.m. tomorrow morning.

Is that agreed? Agreed.