Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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574. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the financial supports being provided to early learning and care in relation to insurance costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9289/22]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School Aged Childcare (SAC) services are required to have insurance as part of their registration with Tulsa, the independent regulator of the sector. My Department provides funding to childcare providers under a number of programmes to provide fully or partly subsidised childcare services to families. Childcare providers are private businesses and my Department does not provide funding for specific operational costs such as insurance.

With regard to the cost of insurance, it is important to note that neither the Government, nor the Central Bank of Ireland, can direct the pricing or provision of insurance products, as this is a commercial matter which individual companies assess on a case-by-case basis. This position is reinforced by the EU Single Market framework for insurance (the Solvency II Directive) which expressly prohibits Member States from doing so.

Notwithstanding this, insurance reform is a priority for this Government. The Action Plan for Insurance Reform, which was launched on 8 December 2020, contains a range of deliverables in a number of Government Department policy areas. It is intended that the cumulative effect of the implementation of the actions will be to improve the insurance environment, in particular for businesses. I am a member of the Sub-Group for Insurance Reform, chaired by An Tánaiste, which has been set up within the Cabinet Committee for Economic Recovery and Investment to implement these reforms, and will publish progress reports every six months.

Seeking to secure a more sustainable and competitive market through deepening and widening the supply of insurance in Ireland remains a key policy priority for this Government. In this regard, it is the Government’s intention to ensure that the implementation of the Action Plancan have a positive impact on the affordability and availability of insurance for individuals, businesses and voluntary groups, including childcare providers.