Bacik calls on children's minister to become Donogh O'Malley of childcare

'Lack of radical vision' for early years care and education

Labour leader Ivana Bacik: 'We've relied far too much on religious institutions and the private sector to fill gaps when the State hasn't stepped in.' File picture: Gareth Chaney/ Collins Photos

The leader of the Labour Party has called on her former student, Children's Minister Roderic O'Gorman, to become the Donogh O'Malley of childcare.

Ivana Bacik has said the Government now needs to introduce a free model of care for younger children, similar to the rollout of free second-level education introduced by Mr O'Malley in the late 1960s.

Ms Bacik, who lectured Mr O'Gorman in law when he was a Trinity College Dublin student, said there is still a "lack of radical vision" when it comes to overhauling early years care and education.

"We've fallen down in Ireland because since the State was formed, we've relied far too much on religious institutions and the private sector to fill gaps when the State hasn't stepped in," said Ms Bacik.

Donogh O'Malley, as education minister 50 years ago, said 'we're going to give every child a free secondary education', this was such a radical step, and that's where we should be on childcare and preschool early years education — saying every child should get this." 

While Mr O'Gorman has indicated that he wants to halve childcare costs over the next two budgets, Ms Bacik said the Government must go further than this to ensure enough spaces for young children are available.

"We saw that sort of big vision and that radical vision with the pandemic and the State just stepped up and incredible things were done really quickly, like the creation of the pandemic unemployment payments, which came over a weekend from Revenue, so, you know, it can be done. 

"What Donogh O'Malley showed us is that it has been done in non-pandemic circumstances too."

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, she added: "We're just seeing such a burden of cost on so many families and we're also seeing a real shortage of places. The less spoken about issue is simply getting a place, never mind an affordable place."

'Green-red government'

Ms Bacik, who took over the leadership of her party from Alan Kelly in March, has said she would like to see a "green-red government", but said the make-up of the next Dáil is "highly speculative now".

Asked about a potential merger with the Social Democrats, which was floated by her predecessor, she said: "We work very closely with the Soc Dems, of course, and we have a lot of commonality and policies and indeed a lot of common past experiences too."

Ms Bacik described Social Democrats politician Holly Cairns as a "terrific TD".

Citing Limerick City and Cork, she said: "We'll be targeting areas where we have a strong base.

"We're ambitious, but you know, we're also conscious that this is a process and I've only just taken over in the last few months. So it's a process of rebuilding, but we're encouraged by the number of people who are coming forward who want to join the party, want to run for us, so this is all part of rebuilding," she said.