Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

We are planning to bring forward proposals for changes to the Child Care Act 1991 to Cabinet by the end of quarter 1. Those will be quite substantial and will include revising the law in the area of the taking of children into care because the 1991 legislation needs to be changed. Tusla's powers of inspection for centre-based childcare will also be included within that legislation. We will add a power in that the Minister will be given the power to create regulations for childminders. It is to be hoped, all things going well and working well with the committee the Deputy chairs, we might get that legislation passed by the end of this year or possibly early next year.

We are also engaging with childminding groups. I met with Childminding Ireland, the largest representative group for childminders, two weeks ago. We are engaging with childminders on the scope of these regulations. We need a regulatory structure. That is correct in assuring quality for children and parents but we also need to recognise, as the Deputy said, that childminding in the home is different to centre-based childcare.

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