Tories stick to their guns on child care tax credits
Times Colonist (Victoria) / CanWest News Service
May 30, 2006
By: Norma Greenaway

OTTAWA -- Human Resources Minister Diane Finley dug in Monday against provincial efforts to persuade the Harper government to abandon its plan for creating child-care spaces in favour of transferring money directly to the provinces.

Finley told reporters at the end of a meeting with her provincial and territorial counterparts the government is sticking to its plan to use tax credits and grants to encourage businesses and community groups to create new spaces.

"We campaigned on that, Canadians chose us with that full knowledge, and now we are going to make that happen," she said.

Some provincial ministers were visibly upset over Finley's refusal to budge during the day-long meeting, their first group encounter with the federal minister since the Conservative minority election win in January.

The chill in the air was evident. There was no joint communique and no joint news conference, despite indications earlier in the day there would be some formal statement.

"I'm disappointed, very disappointed," Mary Anne Chambers, Ontario's minister of children and youth services," told reporters after Finley had left the room.

"Today was a frustrating day," added Deb Higgins, the minster of learning in Saskatchewan.

Chambers said there was a solid front of provincial and territorial ministers behind a plan to redirect to the provinces the $250 million a year that the government has earmarked for tax breaks and grants, beginning next April 1. The government says it will create 125,000 spaces over five years.

Chambers said past experience with such tax breaks in Ontario, for example, shows businesses are not interested in getting into the child-care business.

Finley disagreed, and said she had received indications of interest from corporate groups and businesses. She said she could not, however, provide the names off the top of her head.

Finley said the federal incentive plan was an improvement over giving money to the provinces because it would cut down on administrative costs, a position rejected by the provinces.

Higgins, Chambers and Manitoba minister Chris Melnick said the provinces and territories not only have the jurisdictional responsibility to deliver child care, but they also have built up an expertise in the area over the years.

They said a major gap in the Harper plan is that it provides no money for on-going operating costs once a child-care space has been created.

Finley insisted the federal government is committed to finding ways to make its program work, and that there would be more consultations.

The plan to create spaces is in addition to the government's taxable $1,200 annual allowance for children under the age of six.

To pay for it, the Harper government has announced it will cancel next March the Liberal government's plans to provide $5 billion over five years to the provinces to start building a national early learning and child-care system.

The move means the provinces and territories will have $3.8 billion less than they had anticipated under the Liberal plan.