Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is a pity this issue did not get more attention in the years when there was so much money around and when child care was a major issue for so many couples who were combining their work and family responsibilities. I am very much aware that affordability in respect of child care services is a major issue for Irish parents. We have lagged behind other countries, and there is no question of that. That is one of the reasons I set up the early years group with broad terms of reference. I asked the group to set out its views on what should be in the early years strategy. I set no restrictions on what the group could discuss or on what the recommendations should be.

The report the group produced, Right from the Start, reflects the group's views. I appreciate the work done. It was a wide working group representing the sector and those who have an interest and who work in this area. It is clear from the recommendations in the group's report that there was consideration of affordability of child care despite the Deputy's suggestion. There is a reference to high child care costs. There are recommendations referring to increasing investment in early care and education services without increasing parental fees and to extending the entitlement to free preschool provision. The argument put forward by the group for State support for quality improvements in child care services would see this important parental priority addressed with support from public funding, and this is what we are doing. I announced the Government decision in the budget to provide €4.5 million towards quality supports for preschool services. This will be of considerable benefit to parents, children and providers.

The extension of entitlement to a free preschool year is also of considerable relevance to the affordability of child care. The financial benefit of that preschool year, which was a good legacy, is of great help to parents in terms of costs, and a second year would save parents approximately €3,000, a considerable amount. The group recommended that before we move on to do that, we need to address quality issues, and that is what we are doing with the mentoring and training programme.

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