Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

——to over €141 per child per month this year. This payment, made every month for every child aged under 18 years who is still at school, affords considerable additional financial support to parents above what was available in 1997 and gives all parents options concerning the child care arrangements they consider suitable for their family.

It is only fair to emphasise that the EOCP has been central to the development of child care over the last five years. We all recognise that the child care sector has flourished over the past seven or eight years.

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