Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)

We all realise there are many good things in the budget for parents. There is the reduction in fees through the national childcare scheme and other benefits for new parents, but my biggest issue concerns places for children. We in Carlow have children trying to get into a crèche or childcare facility and they are waiting over a year. While I welcome the funding and how hard the Minister has worked, children getting places is the biggest issue I face and it affects families and parents.

An example was given to me a few months ago and I spoke to the Minister about it. The Carlow core funding threshold band is €189.13. If you live in Dún Laoghaire, your core funding is €316.82. At the end of the day - Carlow, Dublin, Kilkenny, Waterford, wherever - there need to be changes within the core funding system. Everybody operating a crèche pays ESB, staff and other outgoings.

I see there is a new allocation of SNAs to schools in the budget. That is welcome but much of the childcare sector will go there. The biggest issue is they are finding recruitment really hard in the sector. We need to pay the proper wages.

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