Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North-Central, Fianna Fail)

I acknowledge the massive investment made in recent years. Since the introduction of core funding in 2022, something in the region of €259 million has been allocated. In many constituencies, particularly in suburban areas like mine, we still face a severe lack of childcare places. One of the largest childcare providers in the country closed its doors to the scheme a couple of months ago in Carrigtwohill, east Cork, namely Mary Geary's Childcare. That facility has 450 children. When somebody like that turns their back on the scheme, it is not that they wanted to; it is that the offering they give to parents far exceeds the minimum standards required. You might say that is a decision they make, but they have set those high standards. Will the Minister talk about caps for large-scale providers like Mary Geary's Childcare? There is a cap in the region of €700,000 or €750,000 that prevents them from-----

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