Health board inspections have led to the loss of almost 2,000 childcare places in the State, according to figures released by the Department of Health.
The statistics, which were sought by Fine Gael deputy Ms Frances Fitzgerald, show that 1,864 of the State's 44,686 childcare places have been or are about to be lost as a result of the implementation of new regulations.
The reductions were ordered after inspections found that there was inadequate space per child in the premises, or that there were not enough competent adults supervising the pre-school children involved.
The Child Care (Pre-School Services) Regulations were introduced on December 31st, 1996, under the Child Care Act 1991. They set down standards for pre-school services relating to adult/ child ratios, facilities, first aid provision, fire safety, insurance and other matters.
Inspections carried out by health boards since then have led to a reduction of 500 childcare places in the Eastern Health Board area. The next largest reduction was in the North Eastern Health Board area (396), followed by the Southern Health Board area (327), the Mid-Western Health Board area (309) and the Western Health Board area (177).
Ms Fitzgerald said yesterday the new regulations have put an extra cost burden on suppliers of childcare, and the Government was doing nothing to alleviate this burden or increase the supply of childcare places. At a time of high demand for childcare, Government regulations were reducing the number of childcare places available.
The Government introduced capital allowances in the last Budget for expenditure on the construction, refurbishment and extension of creches and nurseries. However, Ms Fitzgerald said this measure was not enough to deal with the crisis.
"The Government must as a matter of urgency introduce a package of measures to deal with this crisis, including a grant scheme to enable providers to comply with regulations. This would go some way towards addressing the shortage in childcare at the supply end of the market."
She said 600,000 Irish women were in paid employment today, and 46 per cent of these had children under four years of age. "This issue is about the proper care of children, supporting families, equal opportunities and has implications for the economy. A failure to deal with it will escalate the pressures in each of these areas."