Louis O'Hara (Galway East, Sinn Fein)

The consequences of the crisis in childcare are well known. Many parents who want to work are prevented from doing so. They have to leave their jobs or reduce their hours and stay at home with their children instead. This is preventing many people, women in particular, from returning to the workplace. It impacts hugely on low-income families. At present, we have some of the highest childcare costs in the EU. Thousands of parents cannot find places for their children or are forced to travel very long distances to access childcare, particularly in rural communities. They are being put under enormous pressure as a result. Most importantly, this is a place where children go to learn, develop and grow. That is why it is vital that we get it right and ensure that it is high quality, accessible and affordable to families.

If we are going to address this crisis and capacity issues in the sector, we need to look at the treatment of early years educators. We know there is extremely high staff turnover. Many good educators are being lost because pay and conditions are not sufficient. Some early years educators are being paid less than the living wage. The increase the Minister mentioned is a pittance. Not only is it contributing to the crisis in childcare, it also demonstrates a total lack of respect for these highly skilled workers. Research by SIPTU indicates that 95% of early years facility managers are concerned that their problems in recruiting and retaining staff will negatively impact service provision.

Many commitments have been given by the Government parties in recent months, including €200 per month childcare pay increases for early years educators and for public provision and State-owned childcare facilities. There is talk of publishing an action plan, which is welcome, but there has not been any movement on this to date. It is time to live up to these promises, to act to deliver genuinely affordable and accessible childcare for all and to move towards a public model. It is absolutely critical to ease the burden on families and to show real respect and value for early years educators.

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