Fine Gael must accept responsibility for promised childcare facilities in new housing developments which failed to materialise, according to Social Democrats TD Aidan Farrelly.
Deputy Farrelly, who is the party’s spokesperson on children, said:
“An analysis published today by the Irish Times highlights that some buildings earmarked as creches are lying empty or are being turned into houses as developers seek permission to drop commitments to provide childcare facilities in large estates.
“Under planning rules, developers are required to include a creche with 20 childcare placements for every 75 homes built in an estate.
“However, due to the high costs of fitting out these facilities, many units set aside for childcare facilities are lying empty. This is a serious setback for parents who bought their homes on the basis that there would be a creche located within the development.
“It is extraordinary to see Fine Gael TD Emer Currie, who is quoted in the same article, criticising the flaws and gaps in the planning system that have led to this situation. Yet it was her party’s own Housing Minister who included the childcare measure when the Strategic Housing Development (SHD) scheme was introduced almost a decade ago.
“This should be seen for the hypocrisy that it is – you don’t get to be a government TD and criticise a policy brought in by your own party at the same time.
“Not only did SHD policy dramatically fail in terms of housing delivery, but it made a mess of the childcare sector in the process.
“In my own Kildare North constituency, we have many examples of new housing developments where planning law stipulated that a childcare facility needed to be built. Often it was claimed that the units were not viable due to their size, so no provider would purchase them – then the developer would seek a change of use to convert them into residential units.
“Many of the proposed childcare units were left as unsightly shells for years. I have met with providers who say they cannot afford to fork out the hundreds of thousands needed to kit out these buildings and have a business that is profitable.
“The early years education and childcare sector is in a very precarious state, and we need government representatives to wake up to that. From recruitment and retention difficulties to a capacity crisis – not to mention affordability – the sector is creaking and in desperate need of leadership.
“In fact, reports today reveal that up to 40,000 children under the age of three are currently on creche waiting lists, with a warning that childcare providers will be unable to expand capacity without significant investment in the sector in the upcoming budget.
“That is why, since being elected, I have requested the government on multiple occasions to establish a joint Oireachtas committee on the future of childcare and early years education (Páistecare). We need to take the same approach as we did with Sláintecare for health policy – a vision for childcare that will survive many governments and map out the future of this struggling sector.”
August 25, 2025