Many spend more on childcare than mortgage, Dáil told
Many people in Ireland are now paying more for childcare than for their mortgages, the Dáil heard today.
Labour leader Pat Rabbitte, whose party published a policy document on the issue last month, said childcare was costing an average of €1,065 per month per child, or €13,000 per annum.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern acknowledged that it was a huge financial strain on couples but he said that the issue could not be resolved overnight.
A survey published earlier today indicated that childcare costs were now the third biggest political issue for all parents of children under 14.
It also found that most parents with young children believed the Government had not adequately addressed the issue of high-quality childcare.
Mr Ahern told the Dáil during Leaders’ Questions that he didn’t believe that the state’s childcare measures should discriminate between parents who stay at home and those in the workplace.
He pointed out that child benefit allowances had been trebled from €38 to €141 in recent years.
“Child benefit is childcare. It is money to help people whether they are working in the home or working outside.
“I do not think you can discriminate between people working at home and people working in the workplace. You cannot do that. It’s putting one thing against the other and it’s the wrong thing to do.”
Mr Rabbitte said: “I accept that you can’t put in a perfect childcare system overnight, given the absence of one up to now, but many people in this country are paying more for childcare than on their mortgages.”
Today’s Irish Examiner/Lansdowne poll also showed that most believe working parents should receive tax relief while the state should pay those who stay at home.
Up to 60% of working couples with children under the age of five identified it as the second biggest issue after cost of living.
The survey showed that only one in 10 believed that childcare in this country was reasonably affordable, with 84% saying the Government had failed to address the issue properly.
More than half of couples with children under 14 have one parent dedicated to full-time childcare. Relatives help to care for children in one fifth of families, with 70% of double-income families using private services.
Some 97% of couples said the Government should give tax relief to working parents who pay for childcare, while 85% said they would support a stay-at-home payment.
