Critics are warning that, without additional federal funding, Ottawa's plan to create 250,000 new child-care spaces at an average cost of $10 per day by the end of March 2026 may not be feasible.
The launch of a new national daycare program fuelled high hopes among Canadian families three years ago, but new figures show Ottawa is still a long way from meeting its goal of offering affordable spaces to "all families who need it" by 2026.Critics are warning that, without additional federal funding, Ottawa's plan to create 250,000 new child-care spaces at an average cost of $10 per day by the end of March 2026 may not be feasible.
The federal government has slightly more than two years left to create another 153,000 spaces and reduce their average cost to $10 a day in all provinces outside of Quebec, which already has a similar system in place.A national daycare program was a flagship promise of Justin Trudeau's Liberals in the 2021 election. Political analysts predict their record on this front will be a key point of debate with the Conservatives in the coming federal election campaign.
"It's major work ... and I would suggest Rome was not built overnight, and this is a process. Hard things are hard, and this is one of those things," said federal Minister of Families Jenna Sudds. Ontario's Education Minister Stephen Lecce said he will keep pushing Ottawa to put more money into the program and warned that the program's initial targets and goals are at risk.
Amaryllis Pâquet and with daughter Violette. She says she may have to exit the workforce if she can't find affordable child care. Sylvie Tourigny, who has more than 30 years of experience in the child-care sector, said she has seen a significant spike in demand for child care spaces in response to the new federal program.
Many experts feel that the creation of the program has driven demand for subsidized daycare. Statistics Canada reports growing demand for child-care spaces, with nearly 26 per cent of parents on a waiting list in 2023, up from 19 per cent in 2022. Maggie Moser, owner of a private daycare in Toronto: 'There's definitely not enough money in the program.'
The YMCA warns that, without changes, "many child care programs risk closing at a time when they should be expanding."David Macdonald, a public policy expert who has studied daycare programs, said the main problems have hit the largest provinces outside Quebec — Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta.
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