Affordable child care was a priority for the B.C. NDP during the last election campaign, but the government has got off to a slow start on a promise that affects many young families.
This week, Premier John Horgan said the province would make the largest investment in child care in B.C.’s history.
The NDP platform promised a range of initiatives to make life more affordable, and among those was the idea of $10-a-day child care, with no fees for families earning less than $40,000 a year. The $10 figure was missing from the throne speech on Tuesday, and it might take years to get to that point.
“The journey ahead will take time,” the speech warned to temper expectations, but the journey could be a painfully long one for parents desperately trying to find child care they can afford — or any child care, for that matter.
Although affordability might have to wait, the speech said the government wants to create new spaces and convert unlicensed spaces to licensed, regulated ones. For parents whose names sit on waiting lists, that will be a relief. More spaces might also bring the cost down.
To staff those child-care facilities, the government plans to increase training of early childhood educators and improve their pay so they are more likely to stay.
All these reforms will cost money, probably one reason the throne speech skipped the $10 promise. Tuesday’s budget will attach some numbers to the plan, and parents will see how long a journey they face.
