Dr. Eilis Hennessey:

I refer to Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin's question about whether the group places more emphasis on improving quality than on having a second free preschool year. We were absolutely clear on that point; we emphasised the need for quality throughout. As attending a service that is not of high quality is of no benefit to children, we are absolutely clear that services must be of high quality before we extend the service in any way.

I take Deputy Robert Troy's point that all measures need to be costed. We emphasise this throughout and I hope that when the strategy is published, it will look at costings because it is very important for us to know what the investment in early years education is because it might allow us to see what savings have been made through making it. I do not think bringing Ireland to the point where it is at the OECD level of investment in early years services necessarily represents Utopia. Having an average level of spending is probably something we should be aiming towards and something I would like to see.

On access to early years services, one of our recommendations is that we need full information on the free preschool year. We need to make absolutely sure that the free preschool year service is being accessed by all children from all sectors. Once we have that information, we will be able to see whether particular groups are being missed, although as Ms McLoughlin said, there probably will not be many because we know the uptake is very high. We must also move beyond this because we must look at what is happening within the service to ensure children from all backgrounds and of all levels of ability and disability are fully integrated into the activities of the service. It is not only about getting into the service; it is also about being included in everyday activities within the service.