Mattie McGrath urges action to save small childcare providers
Mattie McGrath urged the Minister to "go back to the drawing board" on childcare supports, warning that current measures are forcing small childcare providers and contractors to close. He argued that successive governments have favoured big business while leaving small providers with inadequate financial support.
Call for ministerial review
He asked the Minister to reconsider policy and provide immediate, meaningful action to prevent further closures among small childcare providers and local contractors.
Praise for grassroots childcare
He saluted champions of childcare, especially small providers, and described his role as a founding member of Nina and Cosclone with Helen McGran and others, calling the institution "of the people, by the people, for the people" and stressing the formative importance of early years.
Financial pressures and inadequate supports
He listed rising costs including insurance, gas and electricity and said that the subventions currently paid to providers are "crumbs," arguing that those supports are insufficient as many small firms and contractors disappear.
Voluntary effort and community strain
He highlighted the countless unpaid hours given by voluntary boards of management and the mental strain on people in both rural and urban Ireland who worry about paychecks and meeting basic bills like heat and light.
Impact on parents and the workforce
He warned that closed or non-viable childcare denies parents the ability to work, forces longer travel and undermines local support networks, and he urged the Minister to act to prevent further damage to families and small providers.
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.
I do want to ask the Minister to go back to the drawing board. I want to do an email refreshing to the gallery tonight and to salute especially the champions of child care that are out there, especially the small providers. Proud and privileged I was to be a founding member of Nina and Cosclone, with Helen McGran and a couple of others. And that institution is flourishing now. Of the people, by the people, for the people. The most important years of our life, we're told, everyone's had studies here, is the formative years of a child. And I have two little grandchildren. It's Nina and Ish. And it's wonderful. But look, you're squeezing all the small people. This government, and the last one, and the one before, has got something personal gripe against all these small businesses. You want all the big business to flourish and to help the small people. These small providers provide very dedicated nurture. I hope all the people involved in the sector do. But I'm just saying they are beautiful. They help people, they nurture. And they instil all the values that are best in them. Insurance, gas, electricity. You name the costs. We've been saying it for years. And the subventions that you throw to them are crumbs. So why is it you have to wait? The same with the firm contractors are disappearing like snow off a ditch now. Why is it you have to wait, as Deputy Tobin said, to them are gone, to them are gone, to them are gone, to them are gone, to them are gone. And you wait that many more will be gone. The work that the voluntary boards of management put in. The countless hours they put in are given off the time freely. And it's best about the mental, the sense of support in rural Ireland and urban Ireland. And those people who can't sleep at night wondering where the next paychecks are going to come. Are they going to have money to pay for the heat and light? And you're squeezing them and squeezing them and squeezing them. So instead of looking at, and then we're denying their mothers and fathers and parents the right to go out to work because they can't get childcare. And the place is closed, they have to travel further and it's not viable. So there's huge issues here. If you don't grasp it and put your hands around it, it'll be all in vain. And I beg you please to do something about it.
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.
