Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 December 2025
23. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if her Department has incurred any costs in the research, development or marketing of her Department’s action plan to reduce childcare costs. [73393/25]
View answerThe Phase 1 report of Shaping the Future: the Early Years Action Plan was published on 17th December. The report focuses on short-term actions to be undertaken in 2026 within the budgetary resources available for the year. In line with the Programme for Government commitment, a broad public consultation process will be undertaken during 2026, as well as additional analysis, to inform Phase 2 of the Action Plan. Phase 2 actions will be published later in 2026 and will be undertaken from 2027 through to the end of 2029.
Most of the specific research and development activities associated with developing the Action Plan, including the consultation process, will therefore be undertaken during 2026. Potential costs of these planned activities are not yet available.
It is important to stress that both Phase 1 and Phase 2 of Shaping the Future are being informed by an extensive range of research, data-analysis, and public consultation processes that have been undertaken over recent years and that continue. These research and development activities are not specific solely to the Action Plan but are critical to the rigour of its analysis. Examples of wider research and development activities that are critical to the Action Plan include:
• Findings from recent reviews of the ECCE programme and Access and Inclusion Model;
• Administrative data available through the Department’s funding schemes;
• A programme of work focused on identifying areas of need, forecasting demand, and planning for the delivery of public supply within the early learning and care and school-age childcare sector where required;
• A nationally representative parent survey on early learning and care and school-age childcare recently undertaken by Ipsos on behalf of the Department;
• The Annual Early Years Sector Profile Survey; and
• Findings from the OECD TALIS Starting Strong Survey of the sector workforce, published earlier in December.
The only costs incurred so far that are specific to the development of the Phase 1 report of Shaping the Future are the costs associated with design, photography, printing and translation costs, as well as costs associated with the launch of the report. In total, as of 15 December, the total of such costs was just in excess of €10,000. If the Deputy wishes for a breakdown of this cost, I can provide it.
