Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

I move:

That Dáil Éireann,

—noting that

—over five years since the publication of the national child care strategy, child care provision is still, in the words of the strategy, "uncoordinated, variable in quality and in short supply";

—the Government's failure to ensure comprehensive child care provision, has negative consequences for children, women, families, society and the economy;

—the complete lack of adequate child care, including pre-school, after school and out of school child care, continues to restrict the participation of parents of young children, particularly women, in the workforce, education and training, as confirmed by the OECD thematic review of early childhood education and care policy in Ireland;

—delivery of child care places and improved infrastructure under the equal opportunities child care programme has been subject to long delays due to the protracted review of funding by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform;

—there is an urgent need to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy for child care provision up to and beyond the completion of the equal opportunities child care programme in 2006; and

—the development of quality child care is self financing through increased tax returns from women's work and less dependency on social security.

—affirms that the State shall have the following goals, which the Government shall work to achieve within a definite timeframe to:

—enable all parents to reconcile their child care needs with participation in the labour force, education and training;

—enable all parents to exercise their choice to care for their children full-time up to one year of age;

—enable all parents to access affordable child care for their children;

—establish universal State provision of pre-school for all children from the age of three to five years; and

—establish universal provision of early childhood care and education based on the Swedish system.

—and calls on the Government, in the interim, to:

— harmonise maternity leave on an all-Ireland basis by increasing maternity leave to 26 weeks paid and 26 weeks unpaid;

—increase maternity benefit to 80% of earnings immediately;

—harmonise paternity leave on an all-Ireland basis by introducing paid paternity entitlements of two weeks per child;

—increase adoptive leave to 24 weeks paid and 26 weeks unpaid;

—introduce paid parental leave and legislate without further delay to implement the terms agreed in respect of parental leave under the Sustaining Progress agreement;

—assist parents with the cost of child care by increasing child benefit to €150 per month for the first and second child and to €185.50 for third and subsequent children and by increasing child dependent allowance to a single weekly figure of €26 for all recipients;

—introduce a child care supplement to be paid as a top-up for child benefit for under fives;

—increase revenue for the equal opportunities child care programme, including capital, staffing and operational funding and immediately expedite all outstanding applications which have been delayed due to the review of the programme;

—reinstate the crèche supplement and the VTOS child care supports, the cutting of which have caused severe hardship to parents and children in disadvantaged communities;

—raise awareness of and increase funding for the childminders' grant scheme;

—review the "Childcare Facilities: Guidelines for Planning Authorities" to assess effectiveness of the guidelines and investigate the possibility of introducing legislation in line with Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 to require developers to construct child care facilities in housing developments and to transfer these to the ownership of the local authority upon completion; and

—bring forward legislation to effectively address the need for employers to share responsibility for provision of child care for their employees.

I will be sharing time with Deputies Crowe, Ferris, Finian McGrath, McHugh, Gormley and Eamon Ryan.

I welcome those who have travelled to attend tonight's debate. I extend a particularly warm welcome to those who have travelled from my constituency especially as this is a sad evening for Monaghan people. We have lost a dear friend and colleague this afternoon with the death of Monaghan town councillor, Gerry Loughran. I measc laochra na hÉireann go raibh a anam dílis.

There is no more important concern for parents, families, communities and our society than the care of our children. All parents aspire to the best quality of life for their children and make sacrifices in their own lives to ensure their children receive the best possible care and attention. However, now more than ever, the care of children is affected by the working lives of their parents. More people than ever before are working full-time and part-time in this State and there has never been a greater need for a comprehensive and accessible child care infrastructure.

The primary reason for that demand is not the requirement of industry for more labour or of parents for the opportunity to work. No, the primary reason for demanding child care provision is the right of all children to proper care. Everybody in this society must share responsibility for vindicating that right, which is at the core of the motion we are presenting. This is a quality of life issue. It is, first, about the quality of life of children who deserve the best care at all times. It is about the quality of life of parents who should be able to spend as much time as possible with their children, especially during their first three years. It is about whether we as a society value quality of life above the current drive for material gain and the greed of the Celtic tiger.

In Éirinn na linne seo tá brú mór ar thuismitheoirí, ach go háirithe ó thaobh chostais na tithíochta de. Bíonn ar an mbeirt tuismitheoir, ma tá beirt ann, dul amach ag obair go lán-aimseartha chun na morgáiste a íoc. Bíonn sé deacair orthu ach go háirithe nuair atá páistíóga acu.

If our society is judged by the quality of its health services and of its care of children, we fall short of the highest standards. In 1999 the national child care strategy was published and it stated that child care in this State was "uncoordinated, variable in quality and in short supply". Five years later that is still the reality. After seven years in office this Government has failed to ensure comprehensive child care provision. The lack of comprehensive child care is restricting the participation of parents of young children, especially women, in the workforce, in education and in training.

Child care is nominally within the remit of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. With all due respect to those in the Department who work on the issue, it is totally inappropriate for that Department to be responsible for this vital area. The child care issue is clearly not a priority for the Minister, Deputy McDowell, and it should be taken out of his hands and out of his Department.

However, it is not only the Minister who sees child care as a low priority. This Government's abysmal record is visible to all. There is a shortage of pre-school, after school and out of school child care places. Many of the places that do exist are beyond the affordable reach of most parents.

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions has pointed out that for many working parents the cost of child care is now second only to mortgage payments as the biggest weekly expense. Indeed, it has been described as being like a second mortgage. That is confirmed by the survey carried out by the National Children's Nurseries Association. It shows that the average weekly cost of a full-time place is €156 for a private facility, €88 for a community place and €141 for the workplace.

Clearly these costs are crippling for many parents and totally prohibitive for others, with the result that many simply cannot exercise their option to take up full or part-time work, education or training. It is predominantly but not exclusively women who are barred in this way. Our economy is losing out hugely as a result. In the motion we argue that the development of quality child care is self financing through increased tax returns from those who, as a result, will be able to take up paid employment and less dependency on social welfare.

The Government's approach to child care is almost totally dependent on the equal opportunities child care programme which runs out in 2006. While much good work has been done under that programme — no doubt Government speakers will tell us about it ad nauseam— the programme cannot provide the comprehensive child care provision that is essential. The delivery of the programme has been fraught with problems. In the course of researching and framing this motion, many child care providers told us of the delays and excessive bureaucracy they have experienced. In fact, opportunities to provide extra child care places have been lost due to these delays.

I will just give one example from my constituency. It typifies the ramshackle nature of this Government's child care provision. Farney community crèche in Carrickmacross, County Monaghan, operates out of three different buildings — one houses the crèche, another is rented for pre-school children and an after school club operates out of the local school. Early last year the community crèche identified a building in the town that would be suitable as a new home for these facilities. It put in an application for capital funding under the equal opportunities child care programme in May 2003 but, to date, has received no response from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. A full 17 months has passed and the people involved are disappointed and disheartened.

In March 2002, the then Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy O'Donoghue, visited Farney community crèche and I have a copy of the letter of thanks he sent to the crèche. He stated:

The [Equal Opportunities Childcare] Programme could not succeed without the dedication and commitment of those members of the local community involved in the management of childcare facilities in their area. . . . . I am aware that your Committee has plans for the further development of the service provided by the Farney Community Crèche and want to assure you that my Department will provide every assistance possible in enabling you to achieve your goals in this matter.

Fine words but the delivery has not happened. Similar experiences can be found throughout the country and throughout the region I represent, as the Border Counties Childcare Network can testify. The Government must increase revenue for the equal opportunities child care programme, including capital, staffing and operational funding, and it must expedite all outstanding applications which have been delayed due to the protracted review of the programme.

However, even that will not be enough. The programme alone cannot provide what is needed. A multifaceted approach is required. This is a motion, not a Bill or a detailed policy, but it outlines the range of measures that are required in the short and medium term. Paid maternity and paternity leave needs to be extended so that parents can spend the most vital formative months with their infant children. There are many families who would choose to rear their children on the income from one working parent, with the other parent caring full-time in the home. However, that option is now closed off for many families, primarily because of the outrageous cost of housing, with massive mortgages being serviced by two working incomes as a result of the disastrous housing policies of this Government.

Parents need assistance with the cost of child care. We propose substantial increases in child benefit and child dependent allowance and the introduction of a child care supplement to be paid as a top-up in child benefit for under fives. Others have proposed tax credits for child care costs and capitation grants for child care places. These and other options need to be considered and, in all this, it is essential that disadvantaged communities and families on low income are not excluded. Of course, this Government is good at excluding people. The petty and penny pinching 16 cuts last year, including in crèche supplement and VTOS child care support, were perfect examples of this Government's disposition. Parents and children lost out so the Department of Finance could save a miserly couple of million euro. Those cuts must be reversed.

Our motion sets out goals Government should work to achieve within a definite timeframe. We should look to the best practice in other countries and this is why we cite the example of Sweden, where child care provision is comprehensive and among the best in the world. We should strive for nothing less. We need to enable parents to reconcile their child care needs with participation in work, education and training. We need to allow parents to look after their children full-time up to one year of age. We should aim for accessible child care for all parents and for universal provision of early childhood care and education from the age of three to five years. We should aspire to the very best for our children and for our society. For that reason, I urge all Deputies to support the motion. I urge the Government representatives to abandon their amendment and to join us in a unanimous statement from this House of our commitment to child care needs into the future.

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