Speaking on behalf of the still very relevant Labour Party,------

Sentiment score: 0.00

-----childcare is a major cost of living for many working families across this country. In too many cases, parents are paying a second mortgage in childcare fees while others are struggling to even find a place for their children. Many community and small providers are barely getting by while educators are leaving the sector day by day. At the same time, we hear that a major childcare chain is being sold to a UK investment firm for €75 million, a chain that has come to Leinster House with its begging bowl and lobbied hard for an increase in fees and for funding increases. Ireland is sleepwalking into a corporate takeover of childcare. The Labour Party was the first party to propose €200 childcare fees, something that all parties seem to agree on. When will the Government get serious about delivering a fully public system of early childhood education and care that delivers affordability for parents, quality for children and fairness for small and medium providers, who are the backbone of this sector?

Sentiment score: 0.16