Ottawa’s original program provided $35-billion to provinces, territories and Indigenous partners through bilateral funding deals.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
Ontario has signed a one-year extension of its child-care agreement with the federal government, the province’s Education Minister says.
Paul Calandra said in a letter addressed to parents and guardians that the funding would keep fees at their average of $19 a day until at least Dec. 31, 2026, with a maximum of $22 a day. The funding had been set to expire at the end of March.
The minister’s office confirmed the details of the letter.
In 2021, the federal government introduced the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care program that provided $35-billion to provinces, territories and Indigenous partners through bilateral funding deals, with the aim of bringing down child-care fees to an average of $10 a day by March, 2026.
Ontario needs almost $2-billion to make $10-a-day child care a reality, A-G says
In October, Ontario’s Auditor-General said that the province needed almost $2-billion to meet the target. The report also noted that Ontario is behind on creating new spaces. As of the end of last year, the province had created only 75 per cent of the 48,000 new spaces it was expected to open.
“While this one-year extension does not address all the funding pressures the federal government’s child-care program faces here in Ontario, it gives us the opportunity to continue discussions with the federal government toward a long-term deal that ensures the program’s long-term sustainability,” Mr. Calandra wrote.
Federal Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu said in a statement that Ottawa is focused on working with Ontario to protect the ability of families to choose care that meets their needs, as well as build a system that strengthens both communities and work-force participation.
“Both governments will work together in the coming year to develop long-term solutions that respond to the needs and priorities of Ontarian families,” she said. “We look forward to finalizing the extension agreement with the Government of Ontario in the weeks to come.”
Most Canadians support publicly funded child care, YMCA and YWCA survey says
Overall, most provinces and territories have signed extensions with the federal government to March, 2031. Alberta and Saskatchewan have not yet signed agreements.
Andrea Hannen, executive director of the Association of Day Care Operators of Ontario, said it is good news for families with subsidized spots, but the extension doesn’t necessarily address the long-standing issues the province has been facing with the program.
“There’s a funding shortfall, and it’s a significant amount of money,” Ms. Hannen said.
She said the governments should allow for more for-profit child-care providers to open Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care spaces. Currently, only 30 per cent can be run by for-profit centres.
Ottawa may fall short of its goal of creating new childcare spaces, Auditor-General says
“You’ve got child-care owner/operators that are in a position to create new spaces, but because they’re run as small or larger businesses, instead of as not-for-profits or by public-sector entities, they’re not allowed to do so,” she said.
“If the goal is to increase access, there really isn’t a practical reason not to allow more participation by small businesses, if that’s what it takes to get more families off waiting lists.”
The new extension means the governments now have more time to address these challenges, Ms. Hannen said.
Carolyn Ferns, the public policy and government relations co-ordinator for the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care, said that families may be relieved, but frustration is also mounting.
“Both of these levels of government are breaking their promise to families,” she said. “Fees are supposed to go down to an average of $10 a day by March, and that’s not happening.”
She said the next year will need to be used to address the funding gap highlighted by the Ontario Auditor-General.
However, both governments seem to want to make a deal work and find a way to address the issues, she said.
“I hope that this is just the start of proper negotiations on making this work and that this is the temporary one-year fix that just buys them more time to actually come to the table and make a real deal.”