Greens pledge biggest expansion of funded childcare for a generation
Speaking at the Scottish Greens Spring Conference ahead of the May 2026 election, party co-leader Gillian Mackay MSP outlined her party's commitment to more funded childcare, promising the biggest expansion for a generation.
Gillian said:
“Conference, we have done a lot, but we have much more to do and much further to go.
“In the weeks ahead we will be laying out our vision for change, with our boldest manifesto to date. And the super rich will hate it.
“It’ll to be focused on the cost of living and on building a Scotland people can afford. One of the focuses for it will be cutting costs for children and families.
“Last year me and my husband became parents to Callan. But whenever I take him to his playgroup or to see other babies, what I hear from parents is always the same.
“They love their children dearly, but they are struggling. Everything is getting more expensive, but it’s the cost of childcare in particular.
“For far too many families, Scotland’s childcare system just isn’t working. It’s too expensive, too inflexible, and your options are too often down to a postcode lottery.
“Families are facing the difficult choice of cutting their working hours, or cutting back on essentials.
“We know that high quality, affordable childcare is one of the best ways we can tackle inequality, both for children and for women returning to the workplace.
“But cost is such a barrier, and families up and down the country are missing out.
“Right now, too many parents, but especially mums, are forced into impossible choices.
“Too many are being saddled with nursery fees that cost more than the mortgage. Too many cutting back on essentials and having their choices made for them, rather than having the independence that comes with a fairer system.
“That’s why, at this election, the Scottish Greens are proposing the biggest expansion of funded childcare for a generation.
"We'll start by extending the current funded childcare hours to all children in Scotland from the week after they turn 2, regardless of where they live.
“That will mean a funded place for 43,000 more children up and down the country. More children learning, more parents back at work, and more money in families pockets.
“Next, we will offer 570 hours of funded childcare for every child in Scotland from 6 months to 2 years by the end of the next Parliament.
“This will help end the cliff edge families currently face, when maternity leave ends and mums have to face the difficult choice of a huge cut in income, or returning to work and stumping up childcare costs.
“This is an investment in our children, in all the women currently priced out of the workforce by childcare, and in the dedicated staff who are caring for the next generation.
“Scotland’s parents and their children deserve a better deal. And the Scottish Greens will deliver it.”