Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Pringle for raising two important issues which are clearly intertwined here - the issue of concrete blocks and particularly the devastating impact that is having in his constituency to community childcare facilities. He made specific reference to Ardara but also referred to Raphoe and Letterkenny. The Department of children is aware of the service in Ardara and it is aware of the impact that defective blocks are having on that service. My understanding is that the Department is examining how it can repurpose existing capital funding in the Department to assist in that case. My understanding is that the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, and his officials are working on this through what they call the Department's sustainability process.

I want the Deputy to know there is an awareness of this issue in Government. There is a real willingness to try to engage and come up with a solution, perhaps separate and distinct from the broader issue of the existing scheme for defective concrete blocks. Considerable work has gone into the enhanced scheme which is now open for applications. The final regulations came as a result of extensive consultation with key stakeholders and the new scheme is now providing very considerable enhancements. As we have discussed in the past, I believe the previous scheme received 1,644 applications with another 514 to the enhanced scheme at the end of May.

While what the Deputy is clearly highlighting today may not be a new issue, it is certainly a new issue to me in the sense that community childcare facilities are now being affected by defective blocks. Obviously, the Government will need to take that extremely seriously. I am pleased that the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman and his departmental officials have an awareness of it. They will engage on the issue and I know they are actively examining how their existing capital funding could be repurposed to assist in this case. I suggest that the Minister might engage directly with the Deputy on the matter.

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