Verona Murphy: Creches closing as childcare funding model fails
Verona Murphy warned that the childcare sector is collapsing due to an underfunded core funding model, saying creches are closing and workers are leaving. She argued the funding model must be designed and agreed before scaling public-sector funding, and she defended independents against claims that they create government instability.
Childcare sector crisis
She said right now childcare sector workers are being paid really, really badly and they're all leaving. She reported that over 600 creches have closed in the last year and described capacity as dwindling because of poor policy.
Funding model critique
Murphy criticised the core funding model for not covering basic costs and said the model has pushed private creches out while public-sector creches now require additional funding. She warned that anybody who stays in the core funding model is ultimately going to close.
Analogy with nursing home sector
She compared the situation to an 80-20 model that, she said, has already undermined the nursing home sector, arguing the same dynamics are occurring in childcare and threatening long-term viability.
Sequencing of reform and funding
Murphy urged that the model must be established before increasing funding, saying the government is 'putting the cart before the horse' and questioning recent decisions to boost public creche funding without a clear operating model in place.
Independents and government stability
She addressed comments from Simon Harris and others in Fine Gael that electing independents would lead to instability. Murphy challenged where the instability would come from, acknowledged independents can 'walk', but said her group will not act as a 'mudguard' and that independents represent people and can deliver stable, realistic, practical policy.
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
Right now, childcare sector workers are being paid really, really badly and they're all leaving. And they're all leaving. How do you do that when the core funding model doesn't cover the basic cost? I mean, this is the issue. We've closed over 600 creches in the last year. Its capacity is dwindling because of poor policy. And I think we have an 80-20 model, this is what's happened with the nursing home sector. It's happened with the nursing home sector. We have brought them to the point of where they're no longer viable to operate. Anybody who stays in the core funding model is ultimately going to close. Okay, so what should happen with childcare? Well, I think we have to first, we're putting the cart before the horse. We don't have, you just recently published that we're going to have to increase the funding to the public sector creches, which is something that you said you wouldn't have to do. We are now in a position where the core funded model in the private creches are pulling out and childcare is going up just to access a place. So what do you do? We have to actually put the model in place before we put, with the funding. Okay, I want to ask you before I go back to Malcolm, Simon Harris and others in Fine Gael have been saying don't vote for independence in this election because it'll lead to instability in the government. If we have too many independents, then you'll have to have independence in the government and that'll lead to instability. They have a point, don't they? Well, where's the point coming from? Where's the instability? There is instability because there's such a wide variety of independence. In your lifetime, do you remember an independent bringing down a government? No, don't quiz me on my political knowledge, everyone if you don't mind, but you can understand the point. No, I can't. I can understand that. It's a nervousness probably from the government because I believe that this… Because independents can walk. Well, I think… I certainly remember independents walking. There might not have been one to bring down the government, but they will reduce the majority to such a point that now the government is unstable. Well, I think there's no independent, well certainly no one in my group will go in to be a mudguard. I mean, we're a very strong, cohesive group of independents and I think there's going to be a lot of independents because ultimately we're representing people, not parties, and we are there to represent the people, but I think you'll see and you'll be surprised there'll be a lot of independents elected in this election who can go here, who can go in and actually create stable, realistic, practical policy and I think that's what's happening on the doorstep. Are you feeling a little left to the side, Patricia? People are not feeling they're represented.
Thank you for downloading 🙏
If you publish this material on social media, we would be very grateful if you tagged VideoParliament. It helps us reach more people and keep building a transparent archive of Irish politics.
