Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Deputy Fitzpatrick asked about Dundalk. I understand that its two local councils have made a contribution this week which will help funding. I take the point he made about ongoing funding. I will ask the Child and Family Agency to send him a report on the funding situation going forward, which I hope will satisfy the Deputy. I know there has been a delay but this week a decision was made by the two councils to give extra funding and I will revert to him on the matter.
Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor raised a range of issues. I have addressed her first point about Children First when she asked whether it was a suite of legislation. Yes, it is, and it must be seen in that light.
The Deputy talked about quality in the sector. There has not been an investment in quality. Parents find child care expensive but the staff involved are not highly paid. Child care is expensive because we have a history of not subsidising it here, unlike in other countries. The sector has made huge efforts to improve quality, which we support at a national level. However, the problem will not be corrected overnight. We are talking about individual relationships between staff in crèches and relationships between management and staff and the children. Obviously parents will be very vigilant. There is no question about parents being vigilant. It will not just be one factor that will make a difference but a combination of management, training, quality and inspection. We are working on all of those issues. I believe a lot of ground must be made up. However, I cannot rule out pockets of bad practice. This is also a legacy issue and every situation is different. I hope the focus on quality in recent months will lead to improvements. The sector is trying very hard to improve but there is a legacy of under-investment in high-quality care, which is a problem.
The Deputy also talked about parenting and childhood obesity. Recent evidence has shown that the rate of obesity is decreasing among some groups. There are educational programmes and safefood advertisements which give information to parents. The latter has had a very good response from the public in general and will make a difference. There is also a policy with regard to play and recreation and a focus on physical activity. All of those initiatives have made a difference. Childhood obesity is a serious epidemic and requires a whole-of-government approach. Every Department can play a role in dealing with the epidemic. This matter has huge implications for the future, not just for the health of children but economically. The approach in Better Outcomes, Brighter Futures, which we outlined yesterday, referred again to co-operation between Departments. I know that the committee has taken an interest in the topic of childhood obesity and I hope the combination of interventions can make a difference, but let us remember that we must work with very young children.

The point about nutrition and feeding in the very early months and years, providing good quality information to mothers after birth, and trying to improve breastfeeding rates are important parts of trying to tackle this epidemic. Breastfeeding rates in Ireland are very low, although there has been improvement recently. It is also an issue that has had an impact on obesity levels, as was pointed out in a number of studies.