Setting our children back
Williams Lake Tribune
Jan 25 2007

The B.C. Liberals must be getting pretty confident. They promised not to sell BC Rail before they were elected in 2001. Then they did sell it - and managed to enrage teachers, nurses, and countless others too - and were re-elected in 2005.

So perhaps it comes as no surprise that along with underfunding School District 27, the B.C. Liberals have also slashed the Child Care Resource and Referral budget by nearly 80 per cent.

Minister of State for Child Care Linda Reid made the announcement earlier this month. Happy New Year! You're on your own!

In Williams Lake, that means no more lending library, which offered toys and playpens to families and child care providers, including specialized toys for children with autism and developmental delays.

It means no more consultation and referrals for families.

It means no more help filling out child subsidy forms.

It means no more Mother Goose programs, which help very young children develop pre-literacy skills vital to helping them succeed when they start school.

The provincial government is pointing to the federal government's elimination of the Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) agreement, which is a loss of $455 million to B.C. over the next three years.

That is unfortunate, and the Conservatives should also hang their heads in shame. The same government that wanted to write a $100 cheque rather than do the real work of creating day care spaces is now again leaving parents out in the cold.

It is no surprise at all that Cariboo-Prince George MP Dick Harris - the same MP who couldn't believe Interior mayors would ask for funding to help homeowners remove beetle-killed trees from their properties - is blaming the cuts on the Liberals. It's standard operating procedure to blame the Liberals.

The provincial government seems to have millions for some trees in Stanley Park and for the Olympics.

To kick off Literacy Week, it announced it would sponsor a new book award, and provide a copy of the winning book to every Kindergarten student. That's wonderful. But learning starts well before Kindergarten, and Reid and the government have just set our children back.

The 46 CCRRs in British Columbia provide early childhood education information; a connection to regional, provincial and federal plans for child care and early learning programs; a partnership with communities, families, and schools; and promote the value of healthy children and families.

The Williams Lake CCRR serves no less than 20 communities: 150 Mile House, Alexis Creek, Alkali Lake, Anaham Reserve, Anahim Lake, Bella Bella, Bella Coola, Big Lake, Canoe Creek, Dog Creek, Hagensborg, Horsefly, Klemtu, Likely, McLeese Lake, Miocene, Nemiah, Redstone, Soda Creek, Tatla Lake, Williams Lake.

If you would like to voice your opposition, here's who to call and write:

- Linda Reid, Minister of State for Child Care
1-250-356-7662
PO Box 9057; STN PROV GOVT; Victoria BC; V8W 9E2

- Dick Harris, MP, Cariboo-Prince George
250-305-2921
113 Yorkston Street; Williams Lake, BC; V2G 1G6