Kathleen O'Meara (Labour)

——the pressure was applied to force the Government to act. Thanks to the publication of policies like those of our party, the Government has finally been forced to act. What has been presented today, however, falls far short of any indication that the Government has any idea of what it is doing on child care.

When is a child care policy a child care policy? In the first instance it is about children and child care but something that is missing in today's package is any mention of pre-school education. Our proposal — others have also suggested it — is that all three-year-old children be entitled to a place in pre-school, the benefits of which are well known. The OECD called for that as did other bodies, including the competitiveness council, but there is no sign of it in the budget. That is one way we know this child care package is not about children.

The Government made a big issue of the supply side. That is the second place we would look to ascertain if this package is about children. One of the problems being faced by parents and children is finding quality, affordable child care places. This Government talks about increasing supply but the figures and the investment fall far short of what is needed. The equal opportunities childcare programme is delivering at some level in terms of bricks and mortar. Many fine child care centres are being built throughout the country with capital funding from the equal opportunities childcare programme but the problem of staffing then arises. These centres are dependent on the use of FÁS schemes to keep them staffed. Their costs are barely being met by the fees they are required to charge parents. In many cases, they are barely able to meet their obligations in terms of the disadvantaged and poorer parents. There is nothing in this budget about that. More capital investment is welcome but where is the evidence of the level of funding that is needed to improve these facilities and deliver for parents and, in particular children?

The extension of maternity leave by up to six months by 2007 is welcome. Unpaid leave is to be extended also. We had a debate on parental leave in this House. Ireland has the worst record in Europe on parental leave. We do not have paid parental leave. Parental leave is not just about parents; it is about children also. The Minister paid some lip service by saying that the first year of a child's life is the most important. That is the case but not the first half year; the first full year. Unpaid leave in the second half of the year is useless to many parents because they cannot afford to take unpaid leave. The notion of extending unpaid leave, therefore, is useless and is an insult to many families. That is another indication that this is not a child-driven, child care package.

The early child care supplement is very similar to the phrase we used in our document. It is clear that the Minister is trying to appear to be doing something but €1,000 a year is less than €20 a week — it is €19 a week. Has the Minister any idea how much people are paying in child care? It is much more than that. This supplement will barely put a dent in it.

There is very little done for private providers in this budget. I am aware from the feedback I am getting that many private providers are operating on very tight margins. I am concerned that the €19 a week will be passed on. The cost of child care will go up by about that much.