Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent)
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1449. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if the automated online system necessary for the full rollout of the targeted portion of the new affordable child care scheme will be ready early in 2018 as indicated previously in Dáil Éireann (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20167/17]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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The policy paper for the introduction of the affordable child care scheme was approved by Government in October 2016. Since then, officials of my Department and Pobal have been working intensively to plan for the implementation of this scheme.

This is an extremely complex and ambitious project because of all that is involved – legislation, new business processes, data protection and building a new IT system. We will need to integrate data from the Department of Social Protection and the Office of the Revenue Commissioners so that the system can calculate every family’s net income and affordable child care scheme subsidy. We will need to test the IT system rigorously to make sure it works, even in complicated family circumstances.

While my officials are working as quickly as possible, I believe it is prudent to take the time to ensure we get the new systems right so that they operate smoothly for everyone. I am therefore reluctant to commit to a definite delivery date at this stage. The affordable child care scheme will be introduced at the earliest possible date, while ensuring that the scheme is fully operational and user-friendly for all concerned.

However, I do not want to delay the benefit of higher child care subsidies for low-income families. For that reason, I recently announced that a number of changes will be made to existing child care schemes that will bring substantial benefits to an estimated 70,000 children and their families from this September. These changes will include a new universal subsidy for children aged from 6 months up to 36 months old (or commencement of the free pre-school programme) and significant increases of up to 50 per cent in targeted child care subvention rates provided under the community child care subvention scheme for children aged from 6 months up to 15 years old . For example, parents availing of full-time child care who currently have their child care costs subsidised by €95 per week under the community childcare subvention – which is the largest of the targeted childcare schemes – will see their subvention rate rise to €145 per week from this September.