John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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Question 458: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the likely cost to the Exchequer of establishing universal provision of early education based on the Swedish system; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12205/05]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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It is not feasible to transpose one model of child care into another jurisdiction without taking cognisance of a wide range of socio-economic and other structural factors and therefore it is not realistic or indeed possible in a short timespan to make an estimate of the cost to the Irish Exchequer of establishing the Swedish model of child care provision in Ireland. Among the factors which impact on the cost of child care provision are the age profile and labour market status of the population, arrangements for parental leave, welfare systems, the taxation system and the age structure for compulsory education.

The funding arrangements for welfare type services such as child care also depend on the central and local taxation regimes. It is understood from a document published at an EU conference in 2004 that expenditure in Sweden on early childhood care and education for the age group zero to six years amounted to SEK34,500 million, about €3.75 billion, in the most recent year for which data were available. This is funded through tax revenue and parental fees.