The cost of childcare in Dublin has become so extortionate for families that it amounts to the cost of a second mortgage, according to Social Democrats Dublin Central byelection candidate Daniel Ennis.<\/p>\n
Councillor Ennis said:<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore the last general election, T\u00e1naiste Simon Harris promised to publish a plan for reducing childcare costs to \u20ac200 per month within the first 100 days of Fine Gael in government.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s now been over 500 days since the promise was made, yet we are none the wiser as to how this commitment will be fulfilled, all the while childcare costs continue to skyrocket.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most recent figures show that the average monthly cost of childcare per child in Ireland is \u20ac850, a huge portion of any paycheck, but the reality in Dublin is even worse – I\u2019ve had constituents get in touch who are paying \u20ac1,800 every month.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese families, who are paying record rents and mammoth mortgages, are being squeezed from every angle. The cost of living crisis is pervasive, seeping into the supermarkets, the fuel pumps, and our energy bills.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor those on a decent income, after all of the bills are paid, there\u2019s very little left. For those faced with greater struggle, like lone parents, low-income households and workers in employment precarity, these costs are pushing them to great sacrifice, and towards poverty. This crisis disproportionately affects women.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a father of two living in Dublin\u2019s North Inner City, I face these challenges myself and understand the burden being placed on families just to keep their kids in creche, a roof over their heads, food on the table and the heat and lights on. It has become completely unsustainable.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Government has consistently treated childcare as an afterthought. At this point, we have to stop calling it a failure and start calling it a choice. It\u2019s a decision, it\u2019s by design.<\/p>\n
\u201cDublin childcare costs four times more than childcare in Germany, where childcare is provided by the State. It\u2019s beyond time that Ireland looks to a public model to tackle this dire situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Social Democrats P\u00e1istecare model of public childcare provision and early years services would see parties across the political spectrum come together to agree a vision for the future of the sector. P\u00e1istecare\u2019s shift from a private model of provision towards State-led childcare would reduce costs for parents, improve staff pay, and improve capacity.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe T\u00e1naiste must put his money where his mouth is and move away from the Government\u2019s overreliance on private services, which have become unaffordable and scarce, and take the leap towards a fairer, more equitable model.\u201d<\/p>\n
April 29th, 2026<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The cost of childcare in Dublin has become so extortionate for families that it amounts to the cost of a second mortgage, according to Social Democrats Dublin Central byelection candidate Daniel Ennis. Councillor Ennis said: \u201cBefore the last general election, T\u00e1naiste Simon Harris promised to publish a plan for reducing childcare costs to \u20ac200 per […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17416,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[296,650,554,725,793,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-childcare","category-cost-of-living","category-daniel-ennis","category-dublin","category-dublin-central-by-election","category-press-release"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n