Ross: No push back against ‘granny grant’
Transport Minister Shane Ross has denied there has been any “push back” against the Independent Alliance’s ‘granny grant’ plan, despite the Department of Finance, rival politicians, and campaign groups insisting the scheme is unworkable.
Mr Ross was forced to defend the budget suggestion during a media briefing in which he admitted the Independent Alliance has no idea how much the potential policy would cost.
Mr Ross said that while the mooted initiative — which would see grandparents and other relatives receive €1,000 a year for self-assessed childcare — has sparked controversy, he is standing firmly behind it.
“I don’t think there’s been any push back at all,” he said. “What we’re going to do is we’re pursuing this as an idea, and as a novel idea, and we’re going to push for it.
“It’s not something I’ve noticed any big push back at all on.”
When asked for more details about how the policy would work and if there was any indication of how much it may cost, Mr Ross admitted “there are lots of questions being asked” and that officials still need to meet to “thrash it out from there”.
However, while declining to call the granny grant a red-line issue, as such language would be “unhelpful”, he insisted the Independent Alliance is serious about the proposal.
“Certainly, it’s something that can be adapted, of course it can,” he said.
“It’s something we think is very novel, very welcome for a large number of people, and could be favourable as well.”
On Thursday, Finance Department sources said the plan could cost “many hundreds of millions of euro” and could have a negative impact on existing financial support for grandparents and other relatives in families.
“There are big questions about this policy,” said the department source.
It’s all well and good until you start looking at a policy that could end up costing many hundreds of millions of euro.
A Government minister, who declined to publicly comment, privately described the plan as “stupid”, as “we are coming under pressure to show a surplus” in the wider economy, while Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin, Labour, and other Opposition parties have criticised the suggestion over the past three days.
Campaign groups have also questioned the validity of the €1,000 grant proposal, warning it may impact on other financial supports already given to grandparents and pensioners, and that the money could be put to better use in other parts of the childcare services.
The campaign group criticism included that of Frances Byrne from Early Childhood Ireland, who said Mr Ross needs to realise cash payments to relatives are “not the answer” and that what parents really need are much improved State childcare services and supports.
