Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)

I welcome the Minister and her officials. I will run through my questions in one go. The first is on foster carers and ensuring a State pension for them, which is really important. I raised this with the Minister's predecessor a number of times and suggested that he would use the mechanism that is there for family carers and I hope the current Minister will do so. The State pension was extended to family carers and that would be the quickest way in which we can ensure a State pension for foster carers. I ask the Minister to look at that as a mechanism. It is really important, in speaking about valuing our foster carers, that they have a State pension and a level of income security at the end of their time providing that care.

The findings of the recent special care report that was carried out on behalf of Tusla make for very stark reading.. The report read to me like a cry for help in terms of other State agencies not coming to the table and not supporting Tusla in its really complex work supporting some of our most vulnerable children. What I also noted from the report was that there appears to be an attitude that children with issues around addiction or mental health need special care, we will put them in there and they will be sorted and yet there are no supports there for addiction or mental health difficulties.

We really need to look at that area of special care. That report certainly raised an alarm bell in terms of special care. Given beds are limited, we must ensure we are using them in the best way and that the children being put into special care facilities have the supports they need, rather than putting in children who need supports for addiction and mental health that are not there.

On early years education, I understand a review of year one of core funding is under way. I would like clarity as to whether that meets the commitment in the programme for Government. My understanding is that it is an overall, almost independent review of core funding. That is essential to be done very quickly.

Pay for early years educators is an issue I have raised regularly with the Minister. We can forget about building capacity if we do not provide our early educators with the pay to which they are entitled. As I have said previously, I have little or no faith in the joint labour committee, JLC. The most recent pay increase was 65 cent. Really good educators are leaving the sector. Again, alarm bells should be ringing because we will have no capacity if we do not have the educators. I am really concerned that agreement is not being reached regarding the €45 million that has been ring-fenced. I am very concerned that agreement will not be reached by September.

I refer to the regulations that have been introduced for childminders. I met a childminder the other day who has been childminding for 30-plus years and currently looks after six children. She told me she does not want to be sitting at her table with paperwork. She wants to be out in the garden and the farm with the children, sowing potatoes and so on. She does a wonderful job, which is replicated across many childminders, especially in rural areas. Childminders are key to capacity and we must give parents options. Particularly for parents who are engaged in shift work and parents in rural areas, we can build capacity by way of childminders. I am concerned about the regulations. Childminders do not want to be at the table doing paperwork. They want to be out with the children, which is something they love. We need to be conscious of that.

I would like an update on the broad consultation and the detailed action plan on early years education. There is an issue with the building blocks scheme, especially for rural areas. I gave the example of the childcare facility in Ballinasloe where the developer built the childcare facility and sold it to the provider. The developer owns another part of the site and the provider wants to build an extension on this land, which it does not own. That will be an issue in many rural areas. Is there any way around that wherein we can show a demand and the benefit for taxpayers' money?

Regarding the mother and baby home institutions, there was a huge overspend last year in excess of €158 million and serious exclusions in terms of the institutions payment. I think always of Michael Grant, a survivor I met last year, who was in Blackrock from when he was four weeks old to almost one year old. His mother paid a so-called rent for him during that time. That facility is deemed a hospital by the Department, yet he lived there for almost a year. We really need to look at the situation of those excluded from the scheme.

I presume the Department was overloaded by expressions of interest regarding the national forum on family resources centres. Will the Minister provide an update in that regard?