November 2021
Justin Trudeau seems desperate for a legacy, any legacy, and right now he seems to be pinning it on a nationwide $10 per day daycare. Call me cynical, but I know Canadian taxpayers are going to end up with the short-end on this one, and I’m not just talking about the heavy tax subsidization that will be required to keep the user cost at $10.
Will the federal government, whatever party is in power, maintain the required federal portion, or will the provinces be stuck with the majority of the bill, just like with healthcare? An obvious disadvantage to Trudeau’s plan is that it only applies to not-for-profit daycare spaces, not private daycare. Additionally, it will take more government subsidies to back-fill the cost of daycare in urban centres like Toronto to keep it at $10.
Doug Ford, if you are listening, refuse to give Junior his legacy project, and reject his proposal. Instead, make a counter-proposal of both federal and provincial tax cuts for stay-at-home parents, essentially paying a parent to stay at home to raise their children, something that advocates have been asking for for years. I’m also firmly in favour of tax credits for those who want to use private daycare, such as a neighbour operating a home daycare, or family member, such as a grandparent or sibling. For lower-income parents who can’t wait for tax-time to get their money, perhaps institute a system where they essentially get an advance on their tax refund.
Tax credits would make for a much better solution to daycare costs.