ashgallagher

Our childcare is among the most expensive anywhere, but tax rebates not the answer rnz.co.nz/news/on-the-in…

Just wrote something about childcare funding and affordability for the Conversation. theconversation.com/new-zealands-c…

Had not expected this connection between beauty products and deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. theguardian.com/environment/20…

I have been looking into childcare for the best part of a year. I’m taking a break from reporting for the minute but if I was following it this week this is what I’d be asking. The first thing: When does Labour plan to do anything about this major issue, and what? (1/5)

@lucaslitmanen Totally, the idea of parental choice in childcare markets is a fiction, for lots of reasons

@ashgallagher3 See also here indeed twitter.com/farmgeek/statu…

Excellent series on the dynamics of the childcare sector in NZ. I published a book on the marketisation of the childcare sector last year with Bristol University Press. The sector has certainly reached a crisis on multiple fronts. i.stuff.co.nz/national/educa…

@lucaslitmanen You are right Lucas, and the rebate scheme proposed by National today will have very limited purchase if the cost per hour that providers can charge isn’t also factored in. We should learn from the mistakes of other countries in this regard.

@ashgallagher3 The Dutch privatization of child care is an unmitigated disaster. It's insanely expensive, and the government has set up this subsidy welfare scheme that itself has become a killing bureaucracy. See also this en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_chi…

Childcare costs often become a hot topic in the run up to an election. Childcare rebate schemes are challenging to administer, and without any meaningful attempt to cap hourly rates, can do little to improve costs for parents. rnz.co.nz/news/national/…

Delighted to see my book in print! Thanks to @estherdermott and @shannonkneis for their support in bringing it to fruition