By Canadian Press

Will Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole axe $6B in child-care money promised to Quebec?

Sep 2, 2021 | 8:45 PM

OTTAWA — The question of what would happen to the $6-billion in child-care funding promised to Quebec by the Liberal government if the Conservatives win power Sept. 20 was one the Tory leader wouldn’t answer during the first televised leaders’ debate Thursday.

Erin O’Toole was pressed repeatedly during the French-language debate hosted by TVA to specify the fate of the deal Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau announced alongside Quebec Premier Francois Legault before the election was called.

When pushed on it, the Conservative leader simply said he would co-ordinate with Legault and that he respects provincial jurisdiction, prompting Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet to question what “co-ordinate” means.

Trudeau has touted Quebec’s subsidized child-care system, which costs $8.50 a day for families able to get a spot, as an example the rest of Canada should follow after introducing a national daycare program in its April budget.

Trudeau now campaigns on that program and is attacking the Conservatives for wishing to shred the eight deals Ottawa already signed with the provinces in favour of a pledge from O’Toole to create a new refundable tax credit that could pay eligible families up to $6,000. 

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The Liberal plan is to provide child care centres with direct subsidies. Its deals with provinces amount to around $12.6 billion to fund nearly 144,000 spaces.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 2, 2021.

The Canadian Press