Calls have been made for the government to take the issue of childcare and early years education with "seriousness."
Local TD Cathy Bennett highlighted the need for "significant investment" in the sector in this year's budget.
The Cavan-Monaghan TD says this is a "crisis" that is affecting thousands of families right across the state.
If major changes in funding for this sector are not made, Deputy Bennett believes the problem will not continue to worsen, and more children will be left on lengthy waiting lists.
According to Deputy Bennett, the fact that 40,000 children are stuck on lengthy crèche waiting lists is a "damning indictment" of this government's failure to grasp the scale of the childcare crisis.
Speaking to Northern Sound, Deputy Bennett said this government cannot step back and ignore this problem: "There are 7,000 children under the age of one waiting for a place in a crèche, meanwhile there are only 97 available places of this type in the state. The numbers for different age groups all tell the same story, there is simply not enough supply to meet the demand.
"The issues of losing staff and not having capacity in crèches is not isolated to one town or village, it is presenting itself across the state, there must be a change of attitude from government in their approach to resolving this issue.
"I urge the Minister and the government to take this issue seriously and work with all stakeholders to significantly increase funding in this year's budget to allow for the retention and recruitment of childcare educators and staff, to increase capacity to meet the demand, and crucially to reduce the shocking number of children sitting on waiting lists."
