Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have also asked a number of times for a debate on child care and we should have one in this House. It would be best if we waited until we received the report commissioned by the Minister, Deputy Reilly, on the best mechanism to provide affordable child care. Senators may not be aware that the Minister has commissioned an expert group to report to him on this by the start of the summer on different ways in which child care can be funded. This is very important as there has been a long debate about how best to fund child care and there are different views as to the optimum model for working parents.

For example, there is a question of introducing tax relief for child care or the option of extending the current early childhood care and education, ECCE, scheme, which provides a subsidy for child care provision. Senator Mooney may not know that after-school child care is provided in quite a number of schools.