Analysis: A baby in one arm, a briefcase on the other

The cover of the Budget 2016 document unveiled by the Government is illustrated with a silhouetted woman in office garb, carrying a baby in one arm and a briefcase on the other.

It is an unabashed targeting by the Coalition of one of a number of struggling groups it hopes to appeal to ahead of the election.

Ireland's sky-high childcare costs are accepted to have a negative impact on female participation in the labour force. Minister for Finance Michael Noonan acknowledged as much in his budget speech.

In choosing this image Fine Gael and Labour are suggesting a solution to a problem and also peddling the image that all things are possible for working mothers.

The Government's "having it all" message has echoes of the famous phrase coined by Sinn Féin's former publicity director Danny Morrison - "an Armalite in one hand and a ballot box in the other" - when outlining an electoral strategy in 1981.

The European Commission has been a regular critic of Ireland's failure to woo women back into the workforce after they have taken time out to have children.

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin claimed the package he announced on Tuesday afternoon "would be of particular help to working mothers".

The widely flagged additional free pre-school year is the centrepiece of the €1.1 billion funding allocated to the Department of Children.

Mr Howlin said children would be eligible for “free childcare” from three years of age, up until they are five-and-a-half, or until they start primary school.

Independent Senator Jillian van Turnhout, former Children's Rights Alliance chief executive, was appointed to the Seanad by Taoiseach Enda Kenny but has been a critic of the Government's past performance in this area.

Providing three hours a day of childcare for another 38 weeks a year would not be a panacea for women hoping to return to the workforce, she said, “but it would be churlish not to welcome it”.

She added: “It’s a step in the right direction.”

While the Government moves to remove barriers to taking up or resuming employment, it must always be seen to respect the legitimate choice made by mothers who choose to stay at home to raise their children fulltime.

The announcement that the Home Carer Tax Credit will be increased to €1,000 a year for single-income married couples with children may help square that circle.

As Mr Howlin implicitly acknowledged, the Government is not acting entirely out of the kindness of its heart here. By increasing female participation in the labour force these measures should also be a key contributor to growth, he said.