I acknowledge the work that an Teachta Kerrane has put in on this important motion. Affordable childcare is a real challenge for families in my constituency, Dublin Fingal East, one of the largest and fastest growing areas. We are seeing large developments being built delivering thousands of much-needed homes but there is little effort being put into planning good quality affordable childcare facilities to meet the needs of families. Those childcare facilities that are being built are not fit for purpose. They are not viable and the costs are way too high. Purpose-built childcare facilities are lying empty in Portmarnock and Swords. They are too small and cannot accommodate enough children to make them financially viable. In Donabate, a developer looked for a change of use to allow a crèche to be turned into two residential units because there was no uptake. Meanwhile Fingal has the lowest proportion of community-based childcare in the State. The Dublin region average is 33%. The State average is approximately 23%. In Fingal, only 5% or 16 providers operate on a not-for-profit basis. The vast majority of these are in Dublin West. This is creating a real crisis in Dublin Fingal East, where families, children and childcare providers need to see a radical shift in Government policy. I am contacted every day by parents who are anxious. If they are lucky enough to get a place in a childcare facility, they simply cannot afford it. In some cases, it is akin to a second mortgage. The introduction of the new maximum caps does not go far enough and many people cannot avail of them. Childcare fees create barriers to using formal childcare facilities, female labour market participation and tackling childcare poverty rates. Sinn Féin is determined to deliver childcare for €10 a day. We are committed to an early years model of childcare that is affordable, high quality, accessible and inclusive. There are immediate actions that the Government can take by providing a roadmap to deliver €200 a month childcare with a clear implementation timeline and by extending the building blocks extension grant scheme to include existing buildings. Something has to give because families cannot afford childcare.

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