Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Coppinger for her suggestions. I would be very interested in taking a further look at them with her. We are both agreed on the need to invest more. How to do that is a complicated process of identifying the best way to deliver access to quality and affordable child care for every child but especially for children from birth to six years of age and for a diversity of families.

While it is important to reduce the costs of child care, it is also important to ensure that people who work in the sector receive a living wage. We must also ensure the scale and coverage of delivery of child care. It is true that more money needs to be provided. I have acknowledged this in my reply with regard to the children who are not yet publicly subsidised, that is, children under three years of age.

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