Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Chad Klassen

ELECTION 2020

ELECTION ISSUES: Childcare

Oct 20, 2020 | 3:27 PM

KAMLOOPS — While the epicentre of this election is COVID-19 and economic recovery during and following the pandemic, each major party is making childcare a focus of the election. The NDP, Liberal and Green parties are all promising affordable daycare with the Greens proposing to incorporate childcare into the public education system.

In the fourth of our five-part election series, Chad Klassen takes a look at each party’s promise and how they plan to make childcare affordable.

The Green Party is proposing free universal childcare that would be part of the education ministry. Green candidate in Kamloops-North Thompson, Thomas Martin says a move into the public education system could create cost-savings that is needed for many parents.

“For me personally, a lot of my friends are spending more than a paycheque on their monthly daycare costs. That’s not affordable. That’s not working,” said Martin. “It hurts the economy if people are forced to step out of the workforce to take care of their kids.”

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The NDP promised universal $10-a-day childcare when elected in 2017. As of 2018, the party stated nearly 33,000 children access $10-a-day care. It has promised to expand the number of families accessing such childcare.

“The NDP party are creating new spaces — 700 new spaces every month — expanding programs and bursary funding for those wanting to pursue a career in childcare and early childhood education after the shortages left by the BC Liberals,” noted NDP candidate in Kamloops-South Thompson Anna Thomas.

The B.C. Liberals are stepping up their childcare game this election, promising 10,000 new spaces while being committed to affordable care based on one’s income.

“Implementing $10-a-day daycare for those with family incomes of $65,000 and less,” said B.C. Liberal candidate in Kamloops-South Thompson, Todd Stone. “That ensures that the most help goes to those who need it the most. Then we’ll have a graduated scale from there, so if your income is $95,000, you’ll receive $20-per-day daycare. If your income is up to $125,000, you’ll receive childcare for $30 a day.”

Conservative candidate Dennis Giesbrecht says to improve childcare in B.C., there needs to be more support for early childhood educators.

“We need to make the career of an early childhood educator financially viable,” he said. “When we have these folks pulling out of the system with their degrees to go work at, whether it’s hospitality or anywhere else because they make more money isn’t the solution,” said Giesbrecht. “We need these educated, qualified and caring people to stay long term in these facilities.”