Dear ……
As a constituent, I am shocked at the current childcare proposals that are funneling children into one model of care and eliminating parental choice by subsidising creches and other facilities.
Currently 62% of parents of nine-month- olds, and 63% of parents when it comes to five-year- olds, choose to stay at home to care for their children but this will change with government funding childcare facilities directly.
I am a stay-at- home parent and my childcare costs are extremely high as I have given up work for a few years to be a childcare provider for my children rather than sending them to a crèche or other facility.
Many families will no longer be able to afford to provide care for their own families as the cost of living rises when dual income families have lower childcare costs compared to other families.
Did you know that Home Carer Tax Credit does not help support us as since tax individualisation in the year 2000 we pay more tax on our euro earned than dual income families? We are also on half the income.
Being a parent, regardless of the type of childcare opted for, is hugely financially burdensome and it’s time that all families were supported equally to make their own choices.
It is not the job of the government to force us into paid employment and deny that the job we do is worth just as much as that of other childcare providers.
We want equal treatment. Do I have your support?
Yours sincerely,