Childcare Deal is a Good Down Payment |
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CCCM media release, Winnipeg, 28 Apr 05
Childcare Deal is a Good Down Payment - Success depends on federal budget
Coalition calls new deal a good downpayment, warns it depends on federal budget
The Child Care Coalition of Manitoba welcomes the bilateral childcare deal to be signed tomorrow by Premier Doer and Prime Minister Martin. The new arrangement is expected to bring $25 million to Manitoba, and the province has committed to spend it directly on improving the non-profit community-based childcare system.
"The deal is ground-breaking," says Susan Prentice, a sociologist at the University of Manitoba and member of the Coalition, "and marks a historic shift in federal provincial childcare development."
"The deal signals that the federal government and province recognize that childcare is a political priority," notes Prentice. "This is a downpayment on what will we hope will become a sustained and stable program for all Canadian families."
"We are confident that Manitoba will use new federal funds both to improve the existing system and begin planning for growth -- two equally urgent tasks," says Thelma Randall, Executive Director of Cornish Child Care Centre and Coalition member.
A great deal of work remains to be done to create a childcare system that works for all Manitoba children and families, according to the Child Care Coalition of Manitoba, which has over fifty member organizations.
The Doer government has significantly invested in childcare, and funding increases have had positive impacts. Despite these improvements, Manitoba has a severe shortage of licensed spaces, an antiquated child subsidy system that requires parents to be well below the poverty line to qualify for full support, an absence of planning capacity, no capital funds to support expansion, and staff wages remain too low. The Coalition's recent report on Winnipeg (available on our website) discovered that access to childcare varies wildly across the city, mirroring inequitable distribution of spaces and services across the province.
The Coalition cautions that the Manitoba deal depends on the success of the federal budget.
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Last Updated on Monday, 01 December 2008 09:26 |