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Commenting on the report from the Petitions Committee, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, said:

"We welcome this call from the Petitions Committee for the government to conduct an urgent review into childcare funding, and commit to emergency funding for the sector. 

"We have long argued that an emergency financial package is needed to ensure that nurseries, pre-schools and childminders across England are able to survive this difficult period of low parental demand for childcare places.

"The government has just announced a welcome rescue package for the arts sector - with one in four childcare providers fearing closure in the next year, there is simply no justification for not extending the same kind of support to the early years. 

"A government that lets the childcare sector fall by the wayside is not one that can claim to be in the side of working families. If ministers are serious about supporting parents to return to work, and to helping the economy recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, it simply cannot ignore this problem any longer."

Editor notes 

• The Early Years Alliance is the largest and most representative early years membership organisation in England. A registered educational charity, it also provides high-quality affordable childcare and education to support children and families in areas of deprivation throughout the country.

• The Alliance represents 14,000 members and supports them to deliver care and learning to more than 800,000 families every year. We deliver family learning projects, offer information and advice, produce specialist publications, run acclaimed training programmes and campaign to influence early years policy and practice.

• The Alliance website is