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THE GOVERNMENT IS planning to focus on reducing the rocketing cost of childcare in the Budget in October, senior sources have said.
This year’s Budget will “be hopefully more about helping parents with the actual costs,” one person with knowledge of the situation told The Journal. It follows attempts in last year’s Budget to increase wages for staff in the sector.
Budget discussions and kite-flying by ministers don’t usually begin until the summer, but due to the increased demands on the purse strings, there will be a lot of competing demands come October as departments jostle to get their share.
Pay and condition discussions are underway with the sector and if agreed to and signed off on, it will result in childcare fees being capped at what they were in September 2021, regardless of whether they have increased over the last year.
The Government has already rolled out two package of measures to help ease the rising cost of living, but there are fears that tinkering around the edges could make inflationary matters worse.
One way of attempting to put more money in people’s pockets is through increasing State supports and reducing the cost of services.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said last week that increased subsidies should be used to reduce the cost of childcare “considerably” for parents.
Capping fees
Giving a speech at the Royal College of Surgeons, Varadkar said:
“We can reduce the cost of services that are influenced by Government. Childcare is already subsidised in Ireland. The focus of additional subsidies this year has been on paying staff better and improving quality.
“Next year, increased subsidies should be used to reduce costs considerably for parents. This will increase disposable family incomes and make it more attractive for parents to return to the labour market thus helping to fill vacant positions and moderate wage inflation.”
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that there is a need for universal access to childcare.
Speaking on International Women’s Day this year, he said childcare remains an issue which primarily impacts on women and their ability to participate in not just the labour force but in all aspects of our society.
“I am determined that we will significantly improve the range and quality of childcare available in Ireland,” he said.
Affordability
The Department of Children is currently working on a proposal that will be sent to the Department of Public Expenditure this summer ahead of Budget 2023 in October.
“The main focus is the affordability of it. There is core funding there now that should really make a big difference,” said one source.
The idea of core funding was introduced last year by Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman, which he said at the time was the key to unlocking some of the most challenging issues in the current funding system and offers a new basis on which to build partnership between the State and providers.
Core funding to the tune of €220 million will help improve pay and conditions in the sector, and in turn, enable parental fees to be controlled by the State, so that the full affordability benefits of the Early Childhood Care and Education Programme (ECCE) programme and the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) can be realised.
Help with the cost of living
Senior sources have said the Government is limited in the further action it can take to reduce the rising cost of living, but said a reduction in the cost of childcare “will help with cost of living, reduce inflation and might encourage and enable more parents to re-enter or stay in the labour market”.
They said this would help with wage inflation and the recruitment problems firms are facing, as well as having a knock on impact on gender pay and the pensions gap.
The Government is well aware that people are also struggling with rent while saving for a mortgage and it is hoped a reduction in childcare fees could help.
Plans are yet to be firmed up but will be in the coming weeks, they added, stating that the systems are in place now to make it doable for October.
However, those in Government circles have said it would be better if the Joint Labour Committee (JLC) for the Early Years’ Service sector, which was set up last year to discuss and agree proposals for terms and conditions for childcare sector workers, would be completed first.
Sources state that the discussions are “coming to a head” and should be ready shortly.
Ensuring there is a deal on pay is vital to being able to pass savings onto parents, said another source, who said the pay right now is not reflective of the work being carried out by childcare workers.
Once an agreement is struck, the focus by Government will be on increasing funding to the NCS, as in the past when that has been done it has been “eaten up” with staff pay and resourcing.
State control of fees
“Just putting core funding into NCS wouldn’t have a benefit for parents as without having control on fees they wouldn’t see it,” said the source who added that if salary payments are agreed and signed up to, it would result in the capping of fees.
All going to plan, fees in the coming autumn would reduce to September 2021 levels, they added.
They said this would be significant as it would be the first time the State would have control of childcare fees
“It has to come down — all three parties are agreed on that,” they added.
Currently the National Childcare Scheme currently provides financial support to help parents to meet the costs of early learning and childcare.
Universal subsidies are available for all children under three years of age, giving up to €1,170 to parents towards the the cost of childcare, regardless of income.
Further targeted subsidies are available for children aged six months to 15 years old, but vary depending on your income, your child’s age, and whether you are working or studying.
It is understood that Fine Gael will be pushing for a big increase in the universal subsidy so all parents will benefit from a substantial reduction in fees.
However, it is believed the Green Party and Fianna Fáil favour more targeted subsidies for lower income families rather than across the board.
In recent weeks, Labour’s Ivana Bacik said a “Donogh O’Malley moment in early years education and care” is needed, describing the Minister for Education who 50 years ago introduced free secondary school places for every child, and adding that the Government should now be seeking to implement and introduce a free childcare place for every child.
Green Party leader and Transport Minister Eamon Ryan said Minister O’Gorman has already done a huge amount of work on the matter, stating ”that it is along the lines and of the scale of ambition that Deputy Bacik speaks about”.
“We want that sort of moment whereby we make it really easy in this country for people to be able to raise a child in the best way possible and that that fits with the various and different family circumstances. That is going to be a budget measure,” he said.
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This should have been done years ago. Lives might have been saved. Ill never forget that story about that poor couple sunbathing in the park in Dublin
@Kyle: it should have been and they should start putting in some proper rules and regulation around electric scooters that are all over the place now, usually very poorly lit up, if lit up at all.
@Jim Lingk: Yes, the new ‘Road Traffic (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill’ is just about to be brought in. E-scooters and e-bikes are catered for in the legislation. Good news!
@Kyle: Absolutely agree. That was an awful episode in Darndale. One of many, sadly.
@Kyle: Indeed, that was horrific, an awful crash.
@Jim Lingk: can you see them? If you can see a scooter at max 25kmh, then it’s up to you to be safe. Out of interest, the guards have been very tough in confiscation of escooters, which so far have caused 0 deaths and 0 injuries to third parties. Their priorities were really messed up that they were afraid to tackle these death traps that have, while targeting hard working immigrants trying to get to work.
@Brynþór Patrekursson:
I have seen them dart out across traffic, I have seen them on footpaths. I have seen them unlit with the user wearing dark clothes. There are not many at the moment but I see them being used irresponsibly by some people. The biggest issue is the lack of lights, in my experience. A bicycle should have front and rear lights and reflectors. The e scooters should too. I have seen some with a small rear light. Maybe that’s on them all but it’s not turned on on them all. I saw a guy last night using a flashlight in his left hand while steering the thing with his right hand.
Also I am almost certain I read of a user being killed off one of these scooters last year.
@Jim Lingk: New laws include front and back lights, no footpath usage, 25kmh speed limiter, no under 17’s. Please don’t tar all escooter riders with the same brush. I use cycle lanes, high visibility clothing and a helmet at all times. I also drive when I really need to, so I pay my road tax.
@Stephen Deegan: I didn’t tar them all with the same brush. I’m glad to hear about the new regulations, particularly around the lights and footpath use. They are a good mode of transport.
About time this was finally sorted out. There a total nightmare having to listen to bikes getting reved up and flying around on grass areas for hours
@Hugh Mc Donnell: And when the fumes clear, you get to see the whole green torn up from them.
@Hugh Mc Donnell: lol makes zero difference you have to catch them and guards are not allowed chase criminals in these bikes so unenforceable law is bad law
@Tom Ripley: that’s what I thought unless gardai get bigger scramblers to out run them
Why are they sold , nip it in the bud from the source.
then sell them to farmers and licensed sports group members not johnny and billo from the corner.
@Darren Byrne: How would stopping be sold stop all the ones that are out there already?
@Mattress Dick: you might also be aware that rural kids use them on public roads as well, putting their and others lives at risk. If they are being used in (private) farmland, then this isn’t impacted, but when young tadgh is using it for thrill seeking or churning up a beach, it will be confiscated as well as Damo in Darndale (apologies to any reason, law abiding Damo).
@Brynþór Patrekursson: Ivor uses a scrambler over in Foxrock too
@Mattress Dick: lm sure he means to people in city settings … im sure you realised that …
As if 1) they will bother to show up and 2) they will manage to chase and catch them
Like any law having them is of little point if they aren’t enforced.
@JustBEERbarry:
A bit like comma’s
@Lotus: it’s commas not comma’s.
@Joey Navinski:
You missed the irony
@Lotus: Not really. Or at all, in fact.
Thumbs up to the government, it’s only taken approximately fifteen years to finely do something about this menace.
It doesn’t say if the Gardai can destroy them? Whats the point in seizing them if the parents can just go the next day to collect them. Need fines aswell, but is is a step in the right direction
And just like that everyone had horses again
About time
Now them electric scooters next, scooters should be seized if on a footpath, poor woman in phisboro got hit by a scooter last Friday, OK she was shocked & not hurt as she was young, but an elderly person it would/could be a different outcome
@Looney Tunes: What about these blimmin yo-yo’s that youngsters do be playing with, up and down they go with gay abandon. They could take an eye out! Such a dangerous world.
@Looney Tunes: it’s the law that puts them on the pavement, which will be sorted soon. As long as you treat them as bicycles and they stay under 25, then they should be legal. I guess your the sorry that will be complaining about pesky bicycles taking up the road/running red lights anyway, so face facts that you will never be happy in a city.
@Alan Biddulph: definitely is a dangerous world out there, you be careful with your yo yo,
Should be interesting, will be hard for them.
@Mary Nugent: yeah unless the gardai actually have scrambler bikes themselves they won’t be able to touch them on a wet mucky Park area.
@Mary Nugent: No bother, sure they have bicycles,, and those modern em! horses I think they call them.
Will the HSE release data on the amount of injuries sustained by cyclists over a single year due to poor cycle lane maintenance and non segregation from buses and taxis. It dwarfs the figures stated in the article. That’s not to ignore the damage that’s caused by the said vehicles. But prioritise safety for cyclists who the government are actively encouraging to ditch their cars for commuting in the city.
@Mick Andrews: I agree with you 100%. The cycle lanes or lack there of needs to be addressed. And more cyclists means less cars in urban areas. That being said there also needs to be a some sort of laws or framework to hold cyclists to account, as a small minority of cyclists are breaking the most basic rules of the road. Cycling on the road when there is a cycle lane available. Breaking red lights. Weaving in and out through traffic congestion. And insurance is another issue. If I had an accident with a cyclist, in which I had done nothing wrong, myself and my insurance company could still be looking at paying out if an injury to a cyclist occurred.
@Andy mc Laughlin: all road infractions are equally applicable to guards, and they can confiscated pedals bicycles if they cross red lights. It’s not held up in convictions because it usually a guards ‘opinion’/bias, but those laws are there. As you haven’t done your research on this, it’s obvious that you don’t know the situation about insurance involving cyclists (similar to all Europe, there is a fund, you don’t need to find details of to the cyclist because the damage isn’t “car level”). You also omit the huge issue here which is presumed liability – in grown up countries, the bigger vehicle is presumed to be at fault. Here, a truck can plough into a child, and the child is at fault while the driver gets away, same in a car pulling out over a cycle lane – the car owner is usually protected; don’t come on here with non facts unless you can justify this.
@Brynþór Patrekursson: the gardai cannot seize a car for a road infraction so what makes you think they can do that for a cyclist? In a country where a person can literally admit they weren’t looking at the road and drive over a cyclist and serve no time in prison i question your view that motorists are always assumed guilty and punished.
@Brynþór Patrekursson: So the gardi need to be on hand to catch the cyclist breaking the law? Other than that there is no way to identify the law breaker because unlike cars the cyclist doesn’t have a registration plate. Don’t you agree this needs to change? Also no law should be enforced at the gardai discretion, this would be helped greatly if the same level of policing was enforced on cyclists as it is to motorists. And can you please supply a reference to access this insurance fund as I have done research and cannot find it. And again I’m not against cyclists and as iv had a car damaged previously by a cyclist I would have liked this information on the fund for insurance to cover costs
@Mick Andrews: You should add the category of cyclists who seem to believe they have a human right to ride at night without working lights or any consideration for other road users (pedestrians, drivers, riders) as they try to avoid them. These bikes should be seized as well on road safety grounds and destroyed by the gardai.
@Andy mc Laughlin:
‘a small minority of cyclists are breaking the most basic rules of the road’
id be happy to share my dashcam footage of any average day driving in Dublin – i assure you this statement is way way way wide of the mark.
@Dave Hammond: I used this remark as I don’t want to tar everyone with the same brush. You are right though it is particularly bad in big urban areas.
@Dave Hammond: I can walk out my door and see 60 cars parked on the path. All illegally parked and also guilting of driving on the footpath. They also did a study of who broke red lights in Dublin. Motorists did it more than cyclists. What you have is selection bias and ignore the motorists breaking rules.
@Dave Hammond: OK, so hands up all the drivers who didn’t go even 1kmph over the speed limit in the last week?
No-one?
No, not even me.
@Craic_a_tower: er, the gardai can seize a car for a number of traffic infractions – they seize scooters for not having an NCT, but they can seize cars for not having NCT, tax or dangerous driving. Alan – yes guards need to catch most crimes, including traffic, that’s why we have courts and both cyclists and (more often) motorists assist before them – primarily on the basis of being “caught”.
I’m delighted also, used to wake us up early on Saturday and Sunday mornings chasing up and down our residential street.
Proper order !! And long overdue.
Only one problem, Gardai are not allowed to chase these bikes, so the new legislation won’t be worth the paper it’s written on. Garda management needs to address this, or the government needs to cover that aspect aswell.
@Damo: Helicopters with nets? Could be a whole new viral story.
@Damo: if the drivers are known to the Guards then the scramblers can be seized from their homes, no need to give them the thrill of a chase.
@EillieEs: if the driver is known and if there face is covered by a mask or helmet and they can prove they were the one driving…. then yes get them later
Yes, but build a few motocross tracks and provide a bit of funding so that these youngsters can have a bit of fun in a supervised and relatively safe way. They would likely also benefit in other ways from the discipline of being involved in organised sport. Talk to the MCUI.
@LaRoucheIrishBrigade: that’s a great idea
Should it not say ‘without a warrant’ ? Otherwise the law seems pointless or am I missing something?
@John Murphy: no. The constitution protects private property and Gardai need a lawful reason to enter onto private property. Also the seize property Gardai need a lawful excuse and in the act of committing a crime is sufficient but after the fact is more difficult. The warrant solves both these problems. It also means that if the drivers is known to Gardai they don’t need to necessarily chase them down but simply wait till they return home.
Give the garda the power to chase then not much good if they can’t
@Lorcan Murphy: I’d imagine it’s the same issue with joyriders in stolen cars. Can hardly chase after them like wolves. You’d end up with more unnecessary crashes and injuries.
About time
if your engaged in illegal activities and get injured that person or their family should not be allowed the make a claim .
Brilliant should have been done years ago
Boomers doing what boomers do best, complaining..
So many kids around here get these for Christmas, I’m glad they’ll actually be able to do something.
One kid used to fly his up and down right outside the local shops until he ran into the delivery car for the chipper and both were injured.
Thankfully it wasn’t too bad, so I hope that he learnt his lesson.
have your say