Childcare has been, it seems fair to say, one of the more silent issues of the election. It is not that the issue has not been addressed in the manifestos. Indeed, no matter what party or configuration of parties ends up in government after the election, childcare and early childhood education will be expanded. That, at least, is what the parties say they will do.
It is, perhaps, a measure of public weariness with the promises of politicians that the manifesto commitments on childcare appear to have generated no excitement and little interest. The lack of response may also have something to do with the fact that the party which is most restrained on childcare is the one which is most likely to be in a position to implement its promises - Fianna Fáil.
It will go on increasing Child Benefit and will not allow it to languish at the same rate for years as happened in the past, it says. It will "significantly" increase childcare provision. It will expand state-funded early education places. This is all praiseworthy, though hardly the most enthusiastic and energetic childcare policy ever seen. Typical of the Fianna Fáil approach is the undertaking to "strengthen the parental leave scheme in line with the recommendations of the social partners". What does that mean? Does it mean anything at all? If it means anything, why did the party not take the trouble to spell it out? This sort of careful, hedged, tired, vague "promise" can hardly be expected to give much comfort to parents or prospective parents.
Fine Gael has the opposite problem: it is quite specific about what it says it will do but the opinion polls would seem to suggest that no-one is listening. The party promises a tax credit equivalent to 20 per cent of vouched child care expenses for children under five; an increase in maternity leave from 18 to 24 weeks for benefits payments; and a capitation grant of €1,200 per child to encourage the provision of pre-school facilities.
Labour goes further than any of the three main parties in its promises. They include a year's paid maternity and parental leave for mothers and 14 weeks for fathers - and the parents can divide the leave up differently between them if they wish. There would be a limited right - but a right all the same - to work part-time for a "defined" period after the birth of a child, a €50 a week childcare subsidy for under-threes, a place for every child in a playgroup. There are many other proposals in the Labour Party document which shows evidence of a close scrutiny of childcare issues.
The cynic will note, however, that if Labour gets into government it will do so in negotiation with another party or parties and the real childcare policies will emerge, not from manifestos but from the programme for government. The same caveat applies to the policies of the smaller parties: they are free to promise but these promises will only see the light of day if the parties are both tough and lucky in negotiations. Meanwhile, parents wait for a modern, European childcare system.