THE Government should not be allowed to sweep the issue of VAT on child care under a pre election carpet, according to the organisation which represents creches and pre school services.
A child care package should include not only the removal of the threat of VAT but tax relief for parents and a once off grant to help child care facilities meet the cost of implementing new standards, Ms Martina Murphy, chairwoman of the National Children's Nurseries' Association, said at the weekend. She added that she welcomed the new standards introduced under the Child Care Act.
Child care should be recognised as an essential part of the infrastructure of our society, she told the NCNA's general meeting in Dublin.
They must ensure that childcare was kept to the front of the political agenda, she told members.
The Revenue Commissioners promised to suspend the imposition of VAT on creches and nurseries following a recent furore when it was revealed that VAT inspectors had begun to visit creches on the strength of an EU directive dating from the 1970s.