Childcare Services

60. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide an update on the eight locations for State-led childcare facilities. [66144/26]

I send my best wishes to Deputy Michael Healy-Rae and his family. I ask the Minister for an update on the eight locations that will be chosen for the first time for State-led childcare facilities.

I join the Deputy in sending best wishes to my constituency colleague, Deputy Michael Healy-Rae. We are mindful of what he has had to endure and we wish him the speediest of recoveries. I am also mindful of his family. This is a traumatic time for them too. I know the whole House sends our best wishes. On the Deputy's question, substantial progress has been made in the State-led early learning and childcare capital programme, which was launched at the end of January. The full business cases are being developed for a number of projects in preparation for final approval, with some of these close to completion now. Projects are developed into full business cases following the approval of a preliminary business case in line with the framework set out in the infrastructure guidelines. The nature and the development of the work required to prepare the full business case varies by project. They are all different and individual. It can include things like independent property valuation, building surveying, due diligence checks on the property, conveyancing, procurement and appointment of technical advisers, detailed design work and associated cost planning and operator selection. This is all required to be underpinned by appropriate legal and contractual arrangements. In some instances, properties are at the point of being sale agreed. Operator selection has been undertaken in some projects and will proceed shortly in the case of others. A cost harmonisation exercise is being undertaken across the programme to ensure consistency in the reporting of capital costs and inform investment decisions, particularly from a cost transparency perspective. This is due to be completed in the coming weeks. The projects currently being developed at full business case stage are spread across the country and, combined, would deliver more than 700 new places. I intend to make an announcement in the coming weeks regarding these specific projects following the agreement of sale prices. In parallel, a further tranche of projects has been prepared as preliminary business cases to bring forward to the steering group meeting later this month and I hope further projects will be approved in principle after that.

I thank the Minister for the update. It is important that we see that substantial progress as we approach October and come almost to the end of the year. There are many eyes on where the eight locations will be. I appreciate I sound like a broken record about Boyle in County Roscommon. The feasibility study about the need in Boyle in north Roscommon is that there are 20 childcare places per 1,043 households. I have lost count of how many times I have put that on the Dáil record, but the Minister will be aware, or her Department will be aware, of a former childcare building that was available in the town and was made known to the county childcare committee and her Department, the forward planning unit of which is leading on this. I want to make that case once again. I appreciate and welcome that a decision will be made in the coming weeks.

The Deputy is right. I appreciate that there are many eyes on this and there is great interest in this initiative, it being the first time that the State is actually stepping in this area with the State-led early learning and childcare initiative. I intend to make the announcement in the coming weeks. I am conscious of the case the Deputy makes about her own area. She has made it eloquently and consistently. I acknowledge Deputy Martin Daly has also made it eloquently and consistently, as have many local councillors. I am conscious of Deputy Kerrane's and Deputy Martin Daly's interest in this area. We are continuing to take applications. This is a long-term commitment by the Government. It is time-consuming. There is the initial business case, then the full business case and then commercial negotiations, which are sensitive. We are pleased with the progress that has been made and look forward to the coming weeks.

I have raised with the Minister many times the matter of looking at other ways that we can quickly build capacity. The State-led approach is one for sure, but there is also the building blocks programme. I again ask that consideration be given to allowing building blocks capital to be used to buy existing buildings. In many towns, particularly in rural areas like my own, across Roscommon and Galway, there are buildings. It is the quickest way to build badly needed capacity in the early years sector. The other point that is important to make is that we can forget about capacity if we do not have the workforce. Far too many early years educators are being lost. They are leaving the sector. Pay is a major issue that needs to be resolved. We will not have State-led services and growing capacity to meet demand or come anywhere close to meeting demand if we do not respect and recognise the workforce. That means paying them adequately and what they deserve and respecting the profession. That needs to be looked at in this Dáil term.

I agree with the Deputy on looking at every possible mechanism that we have to extend capacity. The building blocks scheme is one. In terms of it being State-led, the State is stepping in, particularly with the purchase of buildings. The State will continue to purchase buildings or build them, if that is required in an area. There is also the building blocks scheme for extensions. We are looking at a suite of measures that will, in the quickest timeframe possible, deliver availability or additional availability by supporting providers to do that or through the State stepping in. I agree with the Deputy on the importance of the workforce. There is no point in having buildings if we do not have the workforce. We have a valuable and important workforce currently working in the system and we want more staff in the system. The Deputy will be aware that over two years the Government has invested over €90 million arising from an employment regulation order. The Deputy knows my views on wanting that to be expedited and put in place as quickly as possible.