Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

This is not the first time I have raised the issue of the provision of quality child care places with the Minister because what she has been faced with is a legacy of an approach by previous Governments where child care was merely a tax incentive for builders to provide crèches, and no more than that. Child care places were seen as no more than a labour activation measure for women. What is evident in the damning, distressing footage we saw last night is that nowhere in the provision of care were the needs of children being met.

I ask the Minister to ensure, after the horrendous footage we saw last night in the crèches, that funding must be linked to quality. I am not talking about infrastructure or access to the best, new and brightest toys. I am talking about the warmth of the relationship between the care giver and the child because that is what counts. That is what will achieve the best outcome and impact on the provision of child care for children. It is not just a labour activation measure for women to return to work. It is about the provision of quality, inclusive, holistic child care for our children.

See this speech in context