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Mothers in the home matter too

The financial sacrifice for those mothers who would prefer to stay home to raise their children

Letters to the Editor. Illustration: Paul Scott
The Irish Times - Letters to the Editor.

Sir, – Taoiseach Simon Harris’s commitment to reducing the cost of childcare (“Childcare reform set to form major plank of FG manifesto, Harris indicates”, News, October 26th) will be good news for some families.

Too often, however, policy discussion around childcare neglects those women who wish to stay home with their young children, but find the cost of doing without an income prohibitive. As childcare costs come down, the financial sacrifice for those mothers who would prefer to stay home to raise their children themselves, rather than send them to nursery, becomes ever greater.

I’d like to see a party understand that mothers at home matter too, and the two-income trap that forces women back into work prematurely is as much of a problem for politicians to solve as the high cost of childcare. – Yours, etc,

PORTIA BERRY-KILBY,

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Suffolk,

England.