The conference was officially launched by Minister for Children Brendan Smith, who congratulated the IPPA on their continuing commitment to the development and delivery of accredited training to childcare practitioners, and their overall contribution to the development of childcare in Ireland.

He thanked the organisation for their work over the past 39 years and acknowledged their commitment to enhancing the lives of children and their families through the delivery of quality early childhood and after-school services, and through promoting play as essential for children’s learning, well being and recreation.

The Minister called for a 'yes’ vote in the forthcoming Lisbon Reform Referendum, and reminded delegates that 40% of the €500 million invested in the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme (EOCP) was directly allocated from EU social funds, and that the overall investment in this programme resulted in 40,000 new childcare places between 2000 and 2007.