In the last 20 years, extensive research has shown that good early childhood services play a valuable role in early childhood. It is exceedingly clear that quality matters.

Canada lags behind other industrial nations. Policy research shows that the recognition of high quality EC for children and families is well entrenched in other countries. These services operate within the context of a comprehensive family policy that includes well-paid maternity and paternity leaves, generous child benefits and children’s health services

Most mothers now work outside the home — the first good reason Canada needs a national childcare program. Since the Royal Commission’s report, mothers’ labour-force participation has more than doubled. Young mothers work to contribute to family income, to keep their families out of poverty and to pursue careers — just like young fathers.

For many families, child care is the second highest expense after housing. In Ontario, families can pay between $40 and $60 a day for care. In big cities, the cost is higher.

In most of Canada, child care subsidies are hard to come by or are designed so that even low income parents have to cover high out-of-pocket costs. In Toronto, more than 22 000 eligible families are on the subsidy waiting list on any given day. Many of these families will never reach the top of the list.

Research has shown that Quebec’s investment in its seven dollar a day child care program has more than paid for itself through mothers’ annual income and consumption taxes. Quebec’s child care program increased the number of women in the workforce by 3.8 per cent, pumping an additional $5.2 billion into the Quebec economy and boosting the province’s gross domestic product by 1.7 per cent.

It’s about time for Canadians to stand up and demand a National Child Care Plan!