Vol. 504 No. 7
376 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Education and Science the steps, if any, being taken to protect the rights of a child to good quality pre-school education; if his Department has examined recent EU developments in this area; and the steps, if any, his Department is taking to bring Ireland into line with other EU countries. [13013/99]
Work on a White Paper on early childhood education is under way in my Department. This follows the national forum for early childhood education, which I hosted last year, and which provided an opportunity for all those involved in the area of early childhood education to come together and to share their views on future policy in the area.
The position in other EU countries is being examined as part of the work on the White Paper.
