The cost of daycare in Ontario will be reduced by an average of 50 percent by the end of the year, announced federal and provincial ministers on Dec. 19.
“I know that there were some people who doubted whether we would actually be able to deliver, but in close partnership with provinces and territories, in close partnership with early learning and child care educators who actually do the work, and with parents across the country, we have done it,” said Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland in a press conference in Toronto.
Ontario was the last province to come to agreement on child care with Ottawa.
The Liberals’ national child care commitment was outlined in Budget 2021 with an investment of up to $30 billion over five years.
“This is not just good social policy, but this is really smart economic policy,” said Minister of Families Karina Gould at the press conference.
Gould said the measure would alleviate cost of living issues for families.
“I’ve talked to families who have said when they go to the grocery store they’re not deciding as to whether they’re going to buy meat or not, that the difference that this is making in the lives of families across this country is so meaningful,” she said.
Quebec has long had in place a system of subsidized early learning centres, where parents pay under $9-a-day for services.
Gould says this has resulted in the province having the highest participation of women in the workforce.
Hopefully, she said, many provinces will be competing for that honour in the coming years.
Ontario Minister of Education Stephen Lecce said during the press conference that so far 92 percent of licensed day care operators in the province have enrolled in the cost-reduction program.
“This is significant for Ontario families and parents, because it ensures that their choice is respected and [that] as many families [as possible] are supported,” he said.
