Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)

I am glad this matter, which I submitted last Thursday, has been selected for discussion. Last Wednesday, I was contacted by the Ballyfermot College of Further Education which shortly beforehand had been informed, in an underhanded way when students were taking examinations, that the college crèche would close due to lack of funding. This decision contradicts the announcements the Government made only two weeks ago that it wanted to introduce Scandinavian type child care services and had decided not to proceed in the next budget with a proposed measure to reduce the threshold for lone parent's payment to seven years.

The closure of crèches by the City of Dublin Vocational Education Committee will result in the loss of 73 child care places in Ballyfermot, Cabra and Whitehall. Crèches in vocational education colleges in counties Cork, Limerick and Carlow will also close, while crèches in ten of the 30 VEC colleges are threatened with closure. Child care provision is part and parcel of the integration of communities. Lone parents need crèche supports to access education. One Ballyfermot college student, whose partner's twins attend the crèche, indicated he will be unable to continue his studies without the valuable support of the crèche. His hopes had been dashed, he said, adding, "We just cannot afford child care in this country." The Government must address this problem. I hope the Minister of State will indicate that funds will be provided to ensure the closures do not proceed.

Deputy Ó Snodaigh referred to a state-of-the-art VEC crèche in Whitehall which was opened only last year by the then President, Mary McAleese. Will the Government send President Michael D. Higgins to officially close it in June?

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