I understand the 'childcare budget ' mentioned by the Deputy to refer specifically to the 'Sectoral Programmes For Children And Young People' funding lines of the Departmental Vote given that my Department also provides core funding to Tusla.
Tusla has responsibility for the inspection of childcare services. Inspection is carried out to monitor compliance with the Child Care (Pre-School) (No 2) Regulations with the aim of ensuring the health, safety and welfare of children enrolled in pre-school services. Funding of €1.1m was provided from the childcare funding subheads of my Department in respect of these; however due to some administrative delays, this funding has not been fully drawn down to date.
Budget 2017 provided €1 million to enhance the level of inspection of child care services provided by Tusla and the Department of Education and Skills and my Department will be engaging with Tusla to facilitate the recruitment of additional inspectors in 2017.