Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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120. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs his views on the adequacy of the capitation grant for providers of the free preschool year; and his further views on whether the current capitation grant to preschools is adequate for these providers to pay their care staff a professional wage. [8004/15]

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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We all aspire to have a graduate-led workforce in the provision of early childhood care and education. What are the Minister's views about the adequacy of the capitation grant for providers of the free preschool year? Is the current grant to preschools adequate and does it allow providers to pay their staff a professional wage?

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The Government provides €260 million - in excess of quarter of a billion euro - annually to a number of child care support programmes that assist parents with the cost of child care. This figure includes €175 million provided annually to support the universal free preschool provision under the early childhood care and education programme. These programmes are, of course, in addition to the support provided to all parents in the form of child benefit.

The funding provided through the child care support programmes has had a significant impact on child care provision and enabled many child care providers to continue to deliver child care services at a time of economic difficulty. The funding has also ensured that employment levels across the sector have been maintained. The retention of the current level of investment in child care is a considerable achievement, given the pressure on the public finances over the last number of years.

I recognise the difficulties being faced by child care providers and I am aware of the concerns of child care professionals in respect of levels of remuneration in the child care sector. I met recently with their representatives to discuss a range of issues relating to child care provision and I am giving careful consideration to their views on future developments in the sector. Remuneration for child care workers is a matter for agreement between employers and employees. Staff remuneration does account for the greater proportion of the overall cost of providing child care services and I acknowledge that increased capitation and subvention payments through the child care support programmes would assist child care services in addressing these cost issues. I have indicated that if resources become available to my Department, I will consider the scope for increasing the level of these capitation payments.

However, I want to look at the question of appropriate supports for child care in a wider context. It is crucial that we develop a coherent whole-of-Government approach to investment in child care services. To ensure that all the benefits of our full range of child care investments are fully realised, future public investment in child care must be evidence-based and strategically co-ordinated.

I have established an interdepartmental group to look at provision across the birth to six years age group, as well as to consider the after-school needs of older school-going children, and I have asked the group to report to me by the summer.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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I could not agree more that it is important that we have a whole-of-Government approach to this area. Despite the statement of the Minister's predecessor a number of years ago that the Government was at that time looking at this issue, it has taken in excess of four years for this much heralded interdepartmental group, which is expected to provide all the answers to all our ills, to be established. At the launch yesterday of a report by the Children's Rights Alliance, Professor Nóirín Hayes said that the interdepartmental group report is a further kick to touch because the Government does not know what it is going to do in terms of provision and support for this sector.

In September 2012, the Government reduced the capitation payments for persons with a higher qualification from €75 to €73 per child and from €64.50 to €62.50 for a person without that qualification. This is having a serious effect on service providers, who along with this reduction in capitation payments have had to bear increased commercial rates charges and an increase in employers' PRSI contributions. They cannot sustain services going forward.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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A question please, Deputy.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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In committee a number of weeks ago I asked that the Minister, to help ease the pressures on service providers, would, at a minimum, restore the capitation payments to their original levels.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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I do not wish to be overly-confrontational but Deputy Troy has some neck talking about this Government having taken four years to do this work given the net effect of Fianna Fáil in government for 14 years was a reduction from €480 million to €175 million in child supports. This Government has successfully maintained this level of support despite the now well-known fiscal fiasco left behind by the Fianna Fáil-led Government. I have already made my position clear. As resources become available, I want to restore the cut to the capitation payments. None the less, I have to work within the budgetary constraints in which I find myself as Minister.

This report is not a kick to touch. It is a report that will provide us with the range of options on what will deliver for children and families rather than the Fianna Fáil way of "fire a few more bob at it and hopefully they will all go away".

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Fianna Fáil in government increased child benefit, provided 65,000 new preschool places and established the county child care committees to support a quality service in each county. It also established Síolta and Aistear, internationally recognised curricula, and put in place a framework for delivery of those curricula. There were many good things done in this sector which developed at a rapid pace during the early 2000s.

To be fair, nothing new has happened in the past four years. When this Government took office, it established the new Cabinet post of Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, whose responsibility it was to ensure a cross-departmental approach to this sector. It is disappointing that it has taken four years for the establishment of an interdepartmental working group. Does the Minister agree that, given the main contract of these service providers is with the State, it has an obligation to ensure they are sufficiently resourced to pay their staff? Those employed by the service providers in caring for our young children are providing an invaluable service and they need to be recognised. Currently, they do not feel recognised by the Government.

If they did, there would not have been in excess of 3,000 of them on Kildare Street this day last week.

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Troy pointed out that the child care providers have to pay rates. They always had to pay rates. Nothing has changed in that regard except that not-for-profit child care providers have been afforded some relief by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. He pointed out some of the measures that were put in place as other things were taken away, which I pointed out.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Such as?

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Then the party ran away and left no money in the coffers to sustain them. It is all very well to allude to services being put in place that were put in place with money the party knew it would not have, did not have and could not sustain, and then try to blame others who come after who try to fix the economy for all the ills in the service.

This group is a very important one. I believe it will deliver a menu of options for Government that will be well costed, well analysed and will be able to show in a very real way how we can get the best outcomes for children and support their families, rather than just a gut reaction of putting more money here and more money there and finding subsequently the law of unintended consequences has arisen all over the place and we do not get the results we want.

In terms of the child benefit issue raised by Deputy Troy, child benefit did increase in the previous budget.