The leader of the Labour Party has said that Ireland should move to a state-funded childcare model, and away from reliance on the private sector.
Ivana Bacik says it's time there were better State supports made available for the care of children.
Her comments come as a survey this week showed that parents in Cork trying to secure a childcare place for their babies will have to wait until January next year at the earliest.
A survey of creches around the country revealed that some creches in Dublin, Wexford, Meath and Sligo don't have spaces available until 2024.
Ivana Bacik says moves in the upcoming budget could have a substantial impact on the care economy:
"We have this very piecemeal system that is really reliant on voluntary help, on NGOs or non governmental organizations providing care, and indeed in childcare on private organizations, what we're talking about is moving towards a much better system of state supports for care."
