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

I thank the Deputy. The first area she identified relates to whether we are being strategic. We do not yet have a strategy. As regards why it has been delayed, the commitment to publish the strategy coincided with a commitment to totally reform the early childhood care and education sector in Ireland. As the Deputy is aware, my Department has been engaged in many initiatives and a significant reform agenda at the same time as trying to progress the strategy. Examples of its work are the report on the future investment in child care, the early years regulations, the access and inclusion model, the action plan for school age child care, the expansion of the ECCE, early childhood care and education, scheme and more affordable child care measures in 2017. While I acknowledge there has been a delay, it has been contributed to by that significant reform.

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