Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Will the Minister confirm that he has allocated enough money? As I said, in his reply to me earlier in the year, the Minister said the cost of a full second preschool year would be €180 million but he has only allocated €36 million for 2016, which is 20% of the cost. How does the Minister expect to be able to fund the scheme adequately if he has not put by adequate resources?

The Minister claims there are 10,000 unoccupied places in preschools throughout the country. However, there are also huge waiting lists and, in fact, there are 4,396 children on waiting lists for child care places in other locations. Although I agree there is capacity in certain areas, how will the Minister address the capacity issues in other areas? Will he consider introducing a new capital grant scheme to ensure the service providers will be able to provide the necessary capacity in areas where currently there is not the required capacity?

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