Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 560: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if the rates exemption applied to sessional services to schools or crèches operating only the free early childhood care and education scheme will be applied to existing schools or crèches who provide sessional services under the ECCE scheme in rooms that are solely used for this purpose and are not otherwise used by the crèche or school. [38841/09]

Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the new free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme, which will be introduced in January 2010.

The Valuation Office, which comes under the remit of the Minister for Finance, is responsible for interpreting and implementing the Valuation Act 2001. In July of this year the Valuation Office clarified that the ECCE scheme will result in certain services participating in the scheme being considered exempt from commercial rates.

Services covered by the exemption must be solely and exclusively used for the provision of educational services which are available to the general public and the expenses incurred in providing these services must be defrayed wholly or mainly by the State. I understand that the Valuation Act also allows for community childcare services which are operated exclusively for charitable purposes to be exempt from the payment of commercial rates. This is decided by the Valuation Office on a case by case basis. Childcare services which do not satisfy the conditions of the exemption, as outlined above, will continue to be liable to commercial rates.