Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am here on behalf of Deputy Mitchell. She is at a family event. Her child is graduating from school. I would like to say a few words on the Bill on her behalf. Overall I welcome the Bill and commend the work done on it by the Minister and her Department, as well as by Deputies, Senators, the Joint Committee on Children and Youth Affairs and the Select Committee on Children and Youth Affairs. It was a long process and it is good to finally see it near completion. I particularly commend the staff in the Minister’s Department, who were very helpful in organising briefings for Deputy Mitchell, in answering questions and in discussing amendments that Opposition Members brought forward.

As we have said before, this is only an initial step in bringing about genuinely affordable childcare for those who need it. Over the next few years, we will need to see a number of things happen. Subsidies and capitation grants must increase to bring down the overall cost of childcare. There is a crisis in staffing when it comes to the early years sector and we need to see action in that regard because if we do not, we risk losing an awful lot of highly skilled educators. They are people who have a real grá for working with children and we need to ensure they see a future for themselves in that area of work here in Ireland. I assure the Minister that any progressive initiatives she takes to address the issue of low pay in the sector will have the full support of Sinn Féin. We also need to see more being done to bring childminders into the scheme and to encourage them to register with Tusla. We need to work with them to ensure that childminders do not feel left behind in this process.

Overall I commend the work done in this area and the Minister herself. There is a lot more to be done and I hope this will remain a key issue for the Government over the coming years. I trust the Minister will keep this House updated and informed on the scheme's progress.

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