Barry Ward (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister for the update. I appreciate the progress that is being made on the fee caps. Is there a timeline for when we can achieve that? I know the commitment is within the lifetime of the Government, but the sooner we can do this the better.

As I am sure is the case for the Minister, parents contact me constantly to tell me they are being forced into making unpalatable financial decisions about work and what they do with their children. Many families cannot go to work because it is simply not financially viable for them to do so. We need to ensure that is never the case. These are important life decisions that people should be able to make freely. I know the Minister will agree with this.

If this is not done by the end of next year, for example, will we be in a position to report serious progress at that stage? Rather than waiting for the lifetime of the Government, can we do something more quickly to deliver for parents? Parents are crying out for our commitment to be delivered and we all know how important it is.

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