The small world of daycare centers will be completely transformed if the Éric Duhaime Conservatives take power in Quebec City on October 3.
The platform that will be defended by the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) during the next election campaign, and of which The Canadian Press obtained a copy on Thursday, plans to upset the method of funding childcare services in force since the creation of the Centers de la Early Childhood (CPE) in 1997.
Officially, no type of childcare service (CPE, private or family daycare) would disappear under the Conservative government, but the mode of financing the network would be transformed, so as to put them in competition with each other, and above all to reduce in its simplest form the role of the state in this area.
The basic principle promoted by the conservatives: ensure maximum freedom of choice for parents, “without ideological bias” favoring one model over another.
The formula chosen: in the long term, reduce or even eliminate the public funding of the network, to favor direct assistance to parents.
A Duhaime government would therefore undertake to offer parents a taxable childcare bond of $200 per week, per child, or $10,400 per year. This is somewhat reminiscent of Mario Dumont’s Action Démocratique “duty bonds” in 2003.
The State would therefore no longer be responsible for financing the network. Say goodbye to the daily rate of $8.70. The amount claimed for child care would be deregulated. Each CPE, private or family daycare could set its own rate.
During a first Conservative mandate, the childcare voucher would be put in place “gradually” and “would eventually replace the public funding of CPEs and daycare centers or subsidized childcare services”.
Thus, the Conservatives intend to put an end to “the quasi-state monopoly in childcare”. The document does not say a word about the glaring lack of places in the short term, and does not set any target in terms of the number of places to be created during the next term, in order to meet demand. The waiting list currently exceeds 52,000 names.
“The State must directly support parents and families when possible, rather than subsidizing standardized services, in order to promote a market for services that is more capable of responding effectively and quickly to the needs expressed by families”, can we read in the sixty-page document.
The Conservatives are worried about Quebec’s low birth rate. They prefer large families. A Duhaime government would therefore improve family allowances. It would provide an additional tax credit for families with more than two children. Families with at least two children would not have to pay transfer tax when buying a house.
“The Quebec model of family assistance is discriminatory,” according to the party, which will present its platform to its candidates during a large rally this weekend in Drummondville. Candidates will then receive pre-election training.
Éric Duhaime will deliver a speech in the afternoon on Sunday, followed by a press conference, after having made public his platform which focuses on certain themes: health, the environment, transport and the economy.
Like child care, the chapter on education addresses the subject from the angle of financing, but remains sparse with details.
School funding
Under a Conservative government, school funding will also go through the parents.
“It is by redirecting resources and decision-making power to those who work directly with students, school administrators, teachers and parents that we will promote the best possible decisions in the interest of students and their success,” the document reads.
The PCQ would like to see more private sector investment in schools. This could contribute, according to him, to “renew the school stock more quickly and more efficiently”.
A PCQ government would also favor the establishment of charter schools, which are in principle quasi-autonomous, being able to determine their own needs in terms of human resources (not necessarily unionized) and materials.
Academic freedom
A conservative government would be concerned to guarantee academic freedom at the university, and would therefore review the law which has just been adopted on this subject.
Universities should “promptly set up free speech monitoring committees”. A report on the activity of these committees will be produced before the end of the PCQ’s first mandate in order to make the necessary adjustments.