Green Party childcare plan seeks longer parental leave

The Green Party has proposed a €1.12 billion childcare plan offering six months paid parental leave in a child's first year and a tax credit for parents of young children.

It also wants to extend paid paternity leave to two weeks and increase child benefit to €155.92 for the first and second child, and €192.85 for the third and subsequent children.

The party's family and social affairs spokesman Dan Boyle said the economic thinking behind the proposals was to get resources to parents for whom childcare was "an unacceptably high part of their net outgoings".

Mr Boyle said the policy also recognises that eight out of ten children in full-time day care were with childminders.

The Greens want all childminders to take a State-recognised training programme and then become registered to ensure consistent standards.

The party said it believes paid child-care is a good and flexible way to care for children, representing good value for families and the taxpayer.

The tax credits proposed by the Greens would be worth €150 per month per child up until the child entered pre-school. Then it would drop to €100 per month until the child is 12 years of age.

Under the party's proposals the tax credits would be refundable, and therefore available as a cash payment to parents not in paid employment.

As an interim measure, the Green Party has called for crèche supplement and the VTOS childcare supports to be reinstated.

Ending these has caused severe hardship in disadvantaged communities, the party said.