Ireland is the second most expensive country in the EU for crèche places for children under three, it emerged today.
New figures from an EU Commission study revealed that the average Irish crèche costs €771 per month for tots in the age group - around €440 less than the UK cost.
In countries such as Latvia, Lithuania and Romania, childcare is completely subsidised by government, with parents paying only for their children’s meals.
Grace Bolton of the EU Commission office in Ireland said crèche fees are expensive here because the Government leaves it to the market to determine costs.
She said: “The main reason why the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands have the highest creche fees for children aged under three is the fact that the creche providers set the price according to the market conditions and the Government does not provide any regulation on the maximum fee payable by families.
“This contrasts with Denmark and Hungary where the maximum fee dictated by the Government is 25% of a family’s income.”
Meanwhile, a recent study compared 135 creches and childcare providers throughout the country and found Dublin had the highest costs.
Parents in the capital paid on average €1,047 per month which is almost a 9% increase from 2013.
In Longford, the average childcare cost was the lowest at €650 – up 8% during the same period.
Meanwhile, Limerick and Cork saw creche costs rises of 3% and 5%, while parents in Galway City paid 15% more compared to those in the county.
