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UĦM calls for free childcare facilities for all

The Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin is urging the government to introduce free childcare services for all those parents who wish to make use of them.

Union officials said the proposal would benefit middle and low-income families and the economy in general, while not being a burden on the state.

The proposal is the main one being made by the union for the Budget.

Josef Vella, UHM General Secretary, said that Malta's female employment ratio was performing worst in the sector of mothers who would have left school at the end of secondary. They found that it was not viable for  them to pay for childcare in order to go out to work.

The provision of free childcare facilities would encourage some 2000 such mothers to go out to work, Mr Vella said.

He said the government should offer up to 5,000 places for children in childcare facilities (from the current 2,000).

This, they said, would create 2,550 jobs, of which 550 would be new carer jobs and 2,000 would be the mothers taking up paid work.

The outlay on the childcare services was projected to be around €11m in salaries for child carers and €3.5m to cover running costs for a total of €14.55 million.

However the government would receive revenue of €4.34 million in direct taxation (based on the 2,000 mothers working an average of 33.7 hours a week and paid the minimum wage). There would also be €10.4 million in indirect taxation and €600,000 less in tax credits for total revenue of €15.43 million.

In other proposals, the UHM called for more sustainable pensions, including talks for the introduction of second pillar pensions by 2015.

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Mario Sacco

Oct 4th 2012, 22:29

Bringing up children is a vocation and having children is beneficial to the nation as well since children will be the future generation who pay taxes when we become pensioners. It is the nation's obligation to care for future generation. Although you are single i think that you are part of the nation as well

Mario Sacco

Oct 4th 2012, 22:20

Il-proposta msemmija ma taghmilx distinzjoni fuq l-income izda jekk iz-zewg genituri jahdmux jew le!!! Jekk taghmel il-kalkoli sew jekk zewg genituri jahdmu it-tnejn allura huma wkoll kontibuturi fit-taxxa.

Leslie Darmanin

Oct 2nd 2012, 15:28

Nobody said this is for "single mothers". The report says it is for "all those parents who wish to make use of them". This means anyone can go and dump their kids at the local childcare centre and go off and do what the hell they want to do. No, this is socialism a its worst. Socialism does not work. It just adds burdens on tax payers and true contributors to the national wealth.

Frans Aguis

Oct 2nd 2012, 15:39

This was actually in their last manifesto.

E Bonnici

Oct 2nd 2012, 16:30

@ Leslie Darmanin.
It's amazing your way of thinking! If you think that all parents send their kids to a nursery because they want to dump them there and not because they are both obliged to earn their daily living, you are wrong my friend.
Sometimes, even when both parents work, their financial obligations that they have to face (loan or rent, the daily living costs...) do not match with the monthly salary.
Don't come with the argument of having a loan on a boat, going abroad every other month, spending their salary on branded clothes, or playing all their wage at the casino or on the super 5. Although I'm sure these scenarios exist, they are definitely a minority.

Parents work today not for pleasure but to live a correct life. I definitely agree that for the stability of a family, 1 of the parents should stay at home (definitely less stress on the parents when it comes to the care of the kids and the daily chores). However whereas this lifestyle was a common feature in the past, even for those who could afford less, today this lifestyle is only available for those who are much well off than the norm.

Leslie Darmanin

Oct 2nd 2012, 16:45

@ E Bonnici

I never said "all parents" for heavens sake, and I do agree with you on all the points mentioned.
It is just that this is the wrong way of going about it. You do not just provide a blacket free childcare service in the hope that it will in the end pay for itself. There are irresponsible parents, there are lazy parents who do not want to work, there are bumers and there are parenents who get their priorities wrong ilike, as you mention,putting travel and brand clothing before their children. A free childcare service would only encourage more of this at the tax payers' expense. One alternative would be tax rebates for example, but certainly not a free service to whoever walks into a child care centre dragging a poor child behind.

Ms Maria Vella

Oct 3rd 2012, 00:33

Single mothers have enough benefits and most of them aren't single they are a bunch of persons who find many loop holes in a system that does not have the balls to control such abuse

S. Zammit

Oct 3rd 2012, 11:46

@ Ms. Maria Vella

Jekk joghgbok tiggenerallizzax! I know of single parents (teen mothers, widowers etc) who raise their kids (very well as a 2 parent family) by going to work, pay taxes like you do with no benefits whatsoever...

Paul Camilleri

Oct 2nd 2012, 20:31

If both parents work, they are to pay for the childcare facilities which they would enjoy and not load a burden through further taxes on pensioners or the unemployed.

Desiree Curmi

Oct 2nd 2012, 19:00

By the same reasoning , Mr Scerri i don't use government hospitals or clinics so why should i contribute to those who do ?? We are living in a civilised country and yes these benefits should be available to everyone. Its the rampant abuse going on that should be stopped.

Desiree Curmi

Oct 2nd 2012, 19:04

That being said i dont agree that the service should be free of charge. It should be discounted...

Emanuel. Vella.

Oct 2nd 2012, 14:56

I am sorry Joseph aquilina,dr.franco debono ghandu ragun bli se jaghmel u naqbel hafna mieghu jien,ghax 'il-klikka gonzipn' imissa ilha li 'jirrezenjat min hemm',u proset dr.franco debono se taghmel pass tajjeb ghal gid ta pajjizna ilkoll.

Joseph Aquilina

Oct 2nd 2012, 15:54

@Emanuel. Vella
I have no dount that you agree with franco debono (voting against the budget) given that this has been the fantasy dream for these last five years for all those which support lejber. That said; the point I wanted to make is that franco decided to vote against the budget (if Austin is still in the cabinet) without even knowing what the budget will contain.

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