Carol Nolan urges urgent action to fix childcare crisis
Carol Nolan warned that the high cost and fragile state of childcare places unsustainable burdens on working families and childcare providers. She argued the National Childcare Scheme has not been poverty-proofed and called for urgent, balanced support for both providers and parents.
Childcare costs and impact on families
She said that for many working families the cost of childcare is equivalent to a mortgage, creating a major barrier to employment and further education, especially for mothers and young women. She cited an ERSI study finding that high daycare costs reduce maternal employment and said government support could increase maternal workforce participation.
Problems with the National Childcare Scheme
She recalled that Budget 2019 raised the scheme's income assessment thresholds from €47,000 to €60,000 and noted the scheme was intended to pay maximum subsidies to families with a reckonable income up to €26,000. She criticised the minister's claim that the scheme was "poverty-proof", saying families still face very high childcare payments.
Pressure on providers and call for supports
She highlighted that childcare providers face steep operational cost increases, including insurance, and many are struggling to reopen. She said providers were treated disgracefully by the insurance sector and urgently need government intervention to sustain the sector and protect jobs.
Choice, workforce and early-years outcomes
She urged a balanced approach that supports all childcare options so parents who choose home care are not disadvantaged and so that parental choice is respected. She commended childcare workers for preparing children for primary school through the ASTAR programme but warned workers are undervalued, underpaid and demoralised, and said rebuilding the sector on a solid foundation is now urgently required.
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Go raibh agat. Read. Coe hirlach, ta athas oram an desaol cun lorch er anruan seo a bwinnin na cúrim lani an oacht, agus bwathlum bwécus ag a bwll do teachta ffuncion ar anna sár obar er ancha in er anruan seo, agus a cwair anruan ósár góra an oacht. I want to commend Deputy Funcion for highlighting what is clearly an issue of huge importance and indeed relevance for thousands of working families across this state. For many working families, too many, the cost of childcare is equivalent to a mortgage. It is a huge financial burden that many families struggle to carry. In Budget 2019, it was announced that income thresholds for assessment under the National Childcare Scheme were to be raised substantially, with a maximum net threshold rising from €47,000 to €60,000 per annum. We also know that the purpose of the scheme, as it was formulated, was to ensure that the maximum subsidy rates would be paid to all families with a reckonable income of up to €26,000. According to Minister Zappone, this was supposed to be poverty-proof. The scheme was to be poverty-proofed by ensuring that families at or below the relative income poverty line would benefit from the very highest subsidy rates under the scheme. But this has not happened. Families are still paying enormous and almost an unsustainable level of childcare payments to providers, who, through no fault of their own, have faced unmanageable increases in operational costs, like insurance. And, I mean, they were treated disgracefully also by the insurance sector, along with many other businesses. The childcare providers urgently need supports. Many of them are really struggling to get back on their feet. And I know that from my own constituency, from speaking to many childcare providers, that government intervention is urgently required to sustain this sector, which some parents choose and depend on as their preferred childcare option. Not all parents choose this option, but it should be there for those who do. In 2018, an ERSI study stated that the high cost of daycare is leading to fewer working mothers, and that greater government support for childcare costs will increase maternal employment. I am aware also that, you know, it is a huge barrier for many women to go out working, the childcare costs. It is also a barrier to further education. And I would be aware of many young women who can't pursue other careers that they would like to, or are indeed educational pursuits, due to the childcare costs. And it does act as a significant barrier. In 2018, an ERSI study stated that, you know, this high cost of childcare is a huge issue. But as one stay-at-home father commented at the time, the government must not use this study to justify further big subsidies for daycare at the expense of other childcare options. And that's what I'm saying. It needs to be fair. It needs to be balanced. All options need to be there for people. And obviously, the childcare sector needs to be sustained. We cannot ignore all of those parents who want to mind their children in their own homes. And all of those parents would prefer if a family member minds their children during the day. And again, it's all about choice and preference. The state must also support parents, all parents, equally, regardless of their childcare preferences. I think that is the model we should be aiming to work towards. One where both the providers and the parents are supported equally, instead of insistence on a one-size-fits-all approach. That really does not take into account of what it is that parents actually want for their children, given the choice. And I want to commend the childcare workers who work so diligently and so hard in preparing children for primary school. And I would have seen that firsthand myself as a primary school principal, that the children came in and they were fantastically prepared for primary education as a result of the rollout of the ASTAR programme. Which, you know, it was fantastic work that the childcare workers put in and a huge effort involved in the rolling out of that programme. And it was done, I have to say, to a very high standard efficiently and effectively. But it is unfortunate and disheartening to see that the workers are undervalued, underpaid and that morale is at an all-time low. This issue pertaining to the childcare workers has to be addressed urgently. In addition to the many other issues that I have highlighted previously, it is evident that many cracks are starting to appear in the childcare sector. And rebuilding the sector, ensuring that there is a very solid foundation is now urgently required and indeed the only way to proceed. Thank you very much.
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