Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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779. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if her attention has been drawn to the recent announcement in budget 2017, that Garda vetted, first aid trained and tax compliant child minders are unregistered and thereby excluded from budget 2017, could be a breach of EU competition laws for the Government by funding one mode of child care business, which is centre based, to the detriment of other businesses in this sector, such as professional child minders and by creating a market dominance and a monopoly for centre based child care businesses. [4426/17]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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I understand that the Deputy is referring to the Single Affordable Childcare Scheme, announced as part of Budget 2017. Until last year, the targeted childcare subsidy schemes operated by my Department were only available to parents whose children were enrolled in community childcare services. During 2016 this was expanded to allow private childcare providers to participate for the first time. I intend that the Affordable Childcare Scheme will further expand the availability of subsidised childcare by increasing the number of providers participating.

In particular, the Affordable Childcare Scheme will for the first time be open on an equal basis to all Tusla-registered childcare providers, regardless of whether they are centre-based providers or home-based child minders. In addition to more than 4,000 centre-based childcare providers, which operate independently in a market context, all Tusla-registered child minders will be eligible to participate in the scheme. It is open to any child minder who cares for more than three unrelated preschool children in the child minders own home to register with Tusla.

It is acknowledged that the number of Tusla-registered child minders is currently small. In order to meet the needs of parents whose preference is to use a child minder, and to build capacity to cater for increased demand in future years, the Department has commenced talks with Childminding Ireland (CMI) in recent months to explore a number of options around how quality can be assured within the child minding sector.

A Working Group has been established, chaired by CMI, and including officials from Tusla and the DCYA, to make recommendations on reforms and supports for the sector in the short, medium and long term, and the feasibility and implications of the migration from voluntary to mandatory regulation. These will include recommendations in relation to child minders who are not currently eligible to apply for registration with Tusla (those minding three or fewer pre-school children, or those minding school age children only).

All existing legislation and international obligations will be considered in the drafting of legislation to underpin the Affordable Childcare Scheme.