BC NDP promote child-care plan while critics point to unfulfilled promises
Child care was front and centre Monday for the BC NDP, its leader David Eby promoting the party's campaign promises.
“The school day is just a portion of the day, and your kids still need care outside of those hours,” said Eby on Monday.
The NDP plan calls for $500 million over two years to build more child-care facilities, an educational assistant for all classes Kindergarten through Grade 3, a mental health counselor at all schools, and expanding onsite before and after school child care.
“The capital budget is great news,” said Sharon Gregson with the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of B.C. “We need more spaces, we need them to be long-term public assets.”
Still, Gregson says the plan doesn’t go far enough.
“Still not enough to meet the demand, and of course the growing demand as more folks move to our province,” said Gregson on Monday.
She wants to see a pay grid implemented—like other provinces have done—to increase wages and attract more badly needed early childhood educators.
“We need to recruit and retain more qualified folks to work in all those new child-care programs.”
The BC Conservatives also rolled out a daycare plan last week, pledging to keep $10-a-day care, prioritize single moms and increase private sector involvement, and noted the NDP promised universal $10- a-day daycare within 10 years in the last two elections—a goal far from fulfilled.
“This is an NDP government that has now campaigned three times in a row on actually providing child care,” said Conservative candidate for Surrey-White Rock, Trevor Halford. “Three campaigns they’ve failed, and one of the main reasons for this is they continue to shut out the child-care providers that are actually working in the private sector.”
Approximately 10 per cent of licensed daycares are now $10 a day, but fees at most daycares have gone down. Still, wait lists are common and many young families continue to pay hundreds of dollars a month.
“I think it fits into the narrative of affordability – I think one of the overarching narratives of this campaign is affordability,” said Dan Reeves, a political scientist at Camosun College.
Meaning, expect to hear more about each party's plan to make child care more accessible and affordable over the next 12 days.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trudeau and Harris? Poilievre and Trump? Here's who Canadians think would work best with: survey
As Americans prepare to elect their next president on Tuesday, new data from the Angus Reid Institute suggests Canadians hold differing views as to which federal party leaders would be best suited to deal with either Donald Trump or Kamala Harris.
B.C. port employers launch lockout at terminals in labour dispute with workers
Employers at British Columbia ports say they are going ahead with locking out more than 700 foremen across the province after strike activities from union members began.
Months after VRBO booking, Taylor Swift fan told home 'not available' during Vancouver concert
A frustrated Taylor Swift fan is speaking out after being pushed from a short-term rental she booked for the upcoming Vancouver leg of the superstar’s Eras Tour.
Felonies, assassination attempts and a last-minute change on the ticket leads voters to Tuesday's U.S. election
A campaign that has careened through a felony trial, incumbent being pushed off the ticket and assassination attempts comes down to Election Day on Tuesday.
Measles cases in New Brunswick more than double in three days
A measles outbreak declared in New Brunswick’s Zone 3 last week, which includes Fredericton and the upper Saint John River Valley, has more than doubled since last week.
Prison sentences handed down for sexually abusive London, Ont. parents
In handing down the sentences for two London parents, Justice Thomas Heeney told the court, "The facts of this case were the most egregious that I have encountered during my 26 years on the bench."
She was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes about a year ago. Here's how her condition was reversed
A year ago, Lorraine O'Quinn was coping with stress, chronic illness and Type 2 diabetes. Then she discovered a health program that she says changed her life.
Surprise swing state? Iowa poll has Harris suddenly leading
Based on victories in the past two elections and polls leading up to Tuesday’s election, Donald Trump had seemed almost certain to win Iowa, but a new poll has Kamala Harris with a sudden three-point lead.
Russia suspected of sending incendiary devices on US- and Canada-bound planes, Wall Street Journal reports
Incendiary devices that ignited in Germany and the United Kingdom in July were part of a covert Russian operation that aimed to start fires aboard cargo and passenger flights heading to the U.S. and Canada, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Monday, citing Western security officials.