Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. My colleagues will not be surprised to hear that my first questions will be on child care.
I liked the presentation of the BC Child Care Advocacy Forum. I looked carefully at your brief and I found that very interesting because, in addition to sociological arguments which are often brought forward, you talked about the economic impact on day care centres and child care centres in the communities, but also about—and this is not often said—the economic impact of the presence of women in the labour force.
If our society is rich, it is in great part due to the massive entry of women in the labour force. I find this interesting and maybe it is the kind of argument which will have more effect on our conservative colleagues and possibly bring them to their senses on this issue.
I saw that you have four recommendations. The first three deal more with the development of a child care system in Canada whereas the fourth one dwells more on income support, thus on benefits.
If you had to choose—because means are often limited—what choices would you make? Should we invest first in child care or give benefits directly to families?