Dublin Chamber is delighted to announce that Roderic O’Gorman TD, Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth will present to Dublin Chamber members on the 19^th of April. We look forward to Minister O’Gorman addressing Dublin Chamber members on the broad range of matters facing his department and his ambitions for businesses in the Greater Dublin Area.

Minister O’Gorman was first appointed to his role as Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth in June 2020. Minister O’Gorman’s department is responsible for the Work Life Balance Bill, governing the right to request remote work. Also, of particular interest to businesses, Minister O’Gorman’s department is responsible for the Gender Pay Gap Information Act and the provision of the Affordable Childcare Scheme.

This style of event offers a unique opportunity for Chamber members to meet and put their concerns directly to key figures in Irish politics. This event will be open to all Dublin Chamber members to attend. Please check out our website in the coming weeks for further details.

OECD data shows that Ireland had the highest decrease in early learning and childcare costs for families across the EU between the period 2019-2021

• 90,000 children are now benefitting from the National Childcare Scheme, an increase of 38,000 children over the last 12 months.
• There has been a 10% increase in the number of early learning and childcare providers offering the National Childcare Scheme.
• OECD data shows that, in 2021, net childcare costs as a share of the household's net income for lone parents on low income fell below the EU average.

Dublin Chamber welcomes this progress, particularly after successfully securing improvements to Ireland’s childcare system and its affordability as requested in its pre-budget submission 2023, which the Government provided through funding to support a reduction of up to 25% in the weekly fee for those availing of the National Childcare Scheme. Dublin Chamber welcomes any measures that will support the provision of early learning and childcare, and address the prohibitive nature of childcare costs, that deter many parents/guardians from seeking to re-join the workforce, at a time when Dublin is struggling to access talent pools that will address skills shortages. The government press release can be accessed here.