Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)

Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, as an am agus an deis a thabhairt dom labhairt ar bhuiséad 2026.. I welcome the opportunity to address the House this evening on the key elements of the budget 2026 allocation for the Department of Children, Disability and Equality. This is the first of five budgets where we begin the journey to achieve a number of key objectives. The first is to secure additional funding to deliver the step change in disability services that is so urgently needed for disabled people. The second is to deliver more affordable, accessible and high quality early learning and childcare. The third is to boost support for the essential child welfare and protection services delivered by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency.

There are substantial increases in budget 2026 for each of these priorities. This year’s budget sees over €3.8 billion allocated to disability, just over half of all funding allocated to my Department. Another €1.48 billion has been allocated to early learning and childcare funding in budget 2026, which is an increase of €125 million in current funding. The allocation for Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, has been increased by €165 million to €1.336 billion. This brings the overall figure allocated to the Department of Children, Disability and Equality in budget 2026 to over €7 billion, which is a 15% increase on budget 2025.

Budget 2026 is a stepping stone to achieving improved services and independence for disabled people. In budget 2026, the budget for specialist disability services for people with complex needs will be increased by 20% to €3.9 billion including capital. The significant additional funding being provided through budget 2026 will support services such as residential care, respite care and adult day services. This year, we are recruiting over 1,000 extra staff in the disability sector. Next year, with the support of budget 2026, we will hire even more staff. This includes 150 more staff for children’s disability network teams, who provide vital therapies for children. There will also be funding to improve the financial stability of voluntary organisations working in the disability sector, who have faced rising costs.

Childcare fees have reduced substantially in recent years and low-income households in Ireland are now paying at or below the OECD average for early learning and childcare for the first time. However, costs for many parents remain much too high. In this budget, we are taking steps to address that with the introduction of a new maximum fee cap to reduce costs for families paying the highest childcare bills.

Through investment in core funding for providers, which is currently at €392 million and will rise to over €436 million for the first time in this budget, we will support providers to maintain the fee freeze for all parents and reduce the maximum fee cap from its current level. Providers with fees below this fee cap will maintain fees at 2021 levels, providing certainty for parents.

While the number of children enrolled in early learning and childcare increased by 19% between 2022 and 2024, we need to continue to support more children availing of early learning and childcare opportunities. Budget 2026 will accommodate an additional 35,000 children expected to benefit from the national childcare scheme next year. Wages for early years educators will increase from 13 October with ring-fenced core funding. I am committed to supporting a new employment regulation order process in the second half of 2026, with a view to enabling a further future round of pay improvements. This will help to address issues of recruitment and retention in the sector and help to unlock unused places which cannot be filled due to lack of staff.

Supporting our most vulnerable children is a key objective for me as Minister. Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, is getting an additional €165 million to bring its budget to €1.336 billion. I am pleased to say that €6 million in new funding is being provided in budget 2026 for innovative earn and learn social work and social care work apprenticeship courses, programmes and sponsorships. This will increase the number of social workers and social care workers in Tusla to over 3,200. Tusla also plans to invest €286 million in expanding residential care, increasing the number of placements for children in need to over 800 next year. This budget also contains €26 million in funding to support our full complement of 26 beds for extremely vulnerable children in special care, with new special care staff grades, staff well-being initiatives and special care therapeutic supports in 2026. I am also allocating €3 million in this budget for the well-being check of 42,000 children whose cases were closed during the Covid-19 pandemic. This is an important exercise to deliver assurances about the safety of these children.

Some of the very important safety nets in this country are our family resource centres. I am really appreciative of the excellent work they do in their communities, and I am pleased to confirm to the House that there is funding in budget 2026 for a further ten family resource centres to be developed, bringing the network to 136. I can confirm that budget 2026 will provide increased funding for women's organisations and Traveller, Roma and LGBTIQ+ organisations. There will be funding available to support the important work of the Adoption Authority of Ireland and increased funding for the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. Budget 2026 will also fund initiatives to help children and young people have their voices heard on decisions that affect their lives. It is hugely important that, at the centre of policymaking right across Government, the voices of children and young people would be heard.

This is just a flavour of budget 2026. It is a record budget for the Department of Children, Disability and Equality of €7 billion and I believe it will help us to make a real, meaningful difference to the lives of all the people we serve from within our Department.

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