Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

Deputy Lahart is entirely correct. There are 21 commitments on childcare in the programme for Government, which is a sign of how seriously we are all taking this and what we are hearing from our constituencies. There is a need to look at how we move sequentially and together regarding all of this because fees are a big part of it. It is a second mortgage for many people so it is a really significant issue. It also involves places. Access to places is a challenge for everyone but it is a more pronounced challenge in some parts of the country. The Minister, Deputy Foley, is doing very good work on this. A mapping or advance planning unit in her Department is looking at where the need will be most acute if and when we start investing in more public and community facilities because we will start there. The point the Deputy is making is that there is a need to get the funding and fee model right. We can have a headline figure that says one thing but if people are actually withdrawing from the scheme, that is obviously having a more detrimental impact on the Deputy's constituents. The Deputy can expect a road map from the Minister in the coming weeks that will set out how we get from here to where we want to go on childcare.

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